Jareth's Journal
by JTheGoblinKing
Summary: Back in 1999 I won the Labyrinth fan fiction award for best characterization of Jareth for this. Yes, I feel old now that I remember that was ten years ago...


Disclaimer: The following is an old Labyrinth fan fiction I wrote for a Labyrinth fan fiction group years. Labyrinth belongs to Henson. Most, if not all, of the Labyrinth fan fiction I am going to post here is at least ten years old, if not older. You will see the original dates they were written placed into these documents. These fan fictions predate the canon of Return to Labyrinth.

To:

Subject: Fwd: JARETH

From:

Date: Thu, 21 Oct 1999 19:02:38 EDT

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Hello Everyone,

I think that you might enjoy this….

I sort of "borrowed" this from the journal of a close…. Friend if

he doesn't murder me of course.

Raven

PS. If Jareth doesn't kill me, I know some of you might.

(This is a re-edited version because I believe His Royal Highness

cannot write his way out of a paper bag.)

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Entry 23434343B:

Well, it is now day two of the Goblin crisis of the public sugar/

caffeine high in the Goblin City, which has now escalated up to my very

castle's court. I still would like to know who the imbecile was who had

introduced my goblins to caffeinated beverages. Who ever it was shall pay

dearly for this annoyance.

I have retreated, having locked myself in my study for the third

time this week to escape the moronic escapades of my own stupid minions. I

am just simply not right in the mood to deal with them all just now at any

rate. ….Oh dear, I just heard another loud crash from the hallway just

outside of this very room. They have just smashed another valuable antique

out there.

Well, I am simply not going to bother with them until later when

they are at least mildly subdued. I do wonder if I can perhaps sedate them.

I have never honestly tried that, at least not with chemical drugs from the

mortal realm. Ah, but then again I would rather to not have them wander

around more dazed and confused then they usually are. That would only be a

another burden for me to bother with. It is actually a monstrous sight as it

is. And being sentenced, so to speak as it were, for an unknown crime to

being their master I would rather not make my personal torture more of a

nightmare then it already must be for me. I think I might wish to trade

nearly anything and or everything just to lead a semi-normal mortal life.

But what is normality anyway but a conformist ideal, a state of being not

unlike the idea of perfection itself. It is nearly impossible, highly

improbable in any reality. Even here 'Where everything seems possible and

nothing is what it seems' this is so. In fact a person being normal I think

in the mortal realm as well as my own would in fact, ironically be seen as

abnormal for it. It's a relative concept, I would think.

I feel a bit melancholy this evening as well as bored out of my skull.

I need some entertainment

Over all I suppose that it is a lovely night here. The moon is a

crystal blue and the evening is still quite young. It is really

aesthetically speaking a beautiful night in fact, it's a shame actually that

my goblins would never notice if it was a beautiful evening or not. I think

that I would give up being the goblin king if I only could. I do not care

much for this position at all, a curse being a human in appearance, immortal

in form and having an intellect of any intelligent man trapped among idiots.

I am rather surprised at my own stamina at having not lost my mind over it

all yet.

I am now growing rather bored and this situation is quite tiresome. I

think that it is now high time that I take my leave for a short while and

visit one of those charming Labyrinth fans on Earth, one of those revolting

little lurkers perhaps on the Labyrinth fan fiction e-mailing list. I do so

despise lurkers. They are like roaches in a wall it would seem to me, waiting

and watching, such idle beings, that they are. I suppose that I should not

be so harsh over such petty things as the dreaded unknown, unnamed lurker,

after all, they do worship ME. An amusing pack of creatures over all, those

Labyrinth fans, I must say.

I shall finish this Entry upon my return….

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Entry 23434343B, section 2:

I have been humiliated and nearly exhausted... again. Please allow

me to elaborate here upon what has just happened to me.

Through the Labyrinth fan fiction e-mailing list, data base, record

"send to- from" files that I accessed through my lap top computer I had found

one sweet, young teenaged, female lurker whom I had not yet gotten around to

making a visitation of an appearance yet to. For the sake of her I will just

now refer to her as "Jane Doe".

Now, I have always felt quite comfortable and free in the form of

the owl. That was my favourite form for Earthly transportation, no need to

interact with mortals at all really unless I would choose to, of course.

I flew through the midnight sky as the wind embraced me, making me

feel connected to the very night itself. The fresh, crisp scents of autumn

were in the air as I swooped through a tree of golden leaves.

I found my way to Jane's bedroom simply enough, an easy and fun task

that it is to pay a visitation to my... mortal subjects. It is so good be

the beloved of not just those bungling, idiot goblins of mine but to these

beautiful young mortals as well. Ah, but I would never in all honesty pay

them a thank you for keeping my amusement up and for simply believing in me

still after all this time. I am simply far too proud for that and for some

reason such confrontations I had always found, awkward, uncomfortable and

over all difficult and somewhat humiliating.

I made a stunning, grand entrance in to the girl's bedchamber. I

was wearing my favourite pair of black leggings. I wore a light frilled shirt

with an open "V" necked collar. I was in an unevenly collared back cloak.

Around my neck hung my cicle pendent on it's chain. I also wore fine leather

boots that ended just below my knees. My thick, long blond hair, the

portions not deliberately spiked up and scattered around my face hung around

my shoulders. I must have looked amazing to mortal eyes just then. I was

proud as I often am of my gorgeous and alluring human-like form and cat like

grace that most of the e-mailing list members (Listians) found so seductive.

My eyes, slightly miss-matched in colour, one being darker and

more dilated then the other crystal blue one could hold anyone's interests as

well as attention or sexual arousal. My hands, as usual kept a slight

movement in their leather gloves. They were always active and need to keep

busy, my hands. I always find that I am fumbling with something to keep

myself entertains, a crystal ball, one of mine usually.

I had always loved the initial reaction to my first appearance to

one of them, those dear Labyrinth fans.

As the sparkles and sparklets of my entrance settled the girl was

abruptly aroused from a sleep (dreaming of me, no doubt). I loved her

shocked and pleased reaction, as if receiving a surprise gift at Christmas, I

fancied that is how it had seemed to her, this grand surprise of my arrival

there in her little room.

She was a simple young thing, quite pretty as she was. Her hair

was a bit on the wavy side and a sweet chocolate brown colour. Her skin was

a lovely dark shade. She was small of build, quite thin. She seemed so very

innocent. This pretty young thing sat up straight in her bed at my sight.

She had fallen asleep in her day clothes, perhaps having accidentally drifted

off to sleep while listening to some rock n' roll music, I thought.

She was wearing those tight, blue jean bell-bottoms that had

somehow by the cruelty of fate come, crawling back in to fashion and a red,

nondescript T-shirt.

Faintly I could hear some obviously recent rock music playing from a

stereo system in the room. The volume was moderately low. I realized that

this young thing had fallen asleep while her stereo system had played that

new, simply dull David Bowie compact disc "Hours" and the song "What's really

happening?" (A wonderfully ironic song for the moment with the recurring

lyric.) was ending and "The pretty things are going to Hell" was now

starting up.

I tried not to flinch at the sound of HIS voice. Of course this girl

was probably only interested in HIM over HIS portrayal of ME in that

wonderful movie that had invoked a new public belief in me, enhancing my

powers greatly. It was charming to me that after thirteen years that film

was back on market, it was a shame that some arse at Jim Henson Home

Entertainment had botched the reformatting of the film.

I smiled as the girl's mouth hung open. Her jaw seemed to be

unfastened to her skull the way her mouth hung open so. I patiently waited

for her natural and unavoidable swoon of my sight to pass. It felt so good

to be so loved.

I would never grow bored with this, I hoped, though for all the

pleasure it would bring to me at that moment my usual empty, tiredness of it

all would return to me later on, no doubt. I knew that my usual spiritual

hunger that would for seemingly all eternity go unfulfilled and for the

moment needed to be ignored. …But I did not let that bother me just then. I

was not thinking of real, emotional attachment or spiritual fulfillment with

a connection with another just then. I would not allow myself to spoil the

moment like that with my own dreary state of mind. I ignored my inner hunger

for affection that I had desired with Sarah. I simply let my ego take control

then and rode out a little shallow fun by enchanting and enthralling this

young thing.

"You're him, aren't you?" She asked finally as her swoon lessened,

allowing her to speak and take a grasp on the moment.

I wanted to laugh at how often I had heard that. At least she knew

who I was.

I made a slight bow. "I am Jareth, the goblin king."

She granted me a wide and childish smile.

As she slowly took in the new wrinkle in her reality (apparently she

did not actually believe in me or never thought that I would actually come.)

I glanced around her room to grain myself a rough idea as to her personality

tastes and personal passions.

It was a common enough room, with a few nice pictures of my self

taken off the Internet, printed out and then taped to her walls, of course it

was not really of me, those pictures. They were of David Bowie dressed up as

me but then again the image is so similar I doubt that anyone but myself

would notice the difference at all.

A video tape VHS copy of Labyrinth lay next to her video cassette

recorder on her dresser beside an old television set with those old turn

knobs, barely colourized.

The girl was now standing. She stepped over to me, clutching at

a small charm necklace around her neck. "Am I dreaming?" This precious

young thing asked me.

I shook my head. "No, you are not, my dear. This is real. I am

really here and you, my dear, wished for me to be come. And so I came." I

said in a quiet, seductive voice.

She looked deep in to my eyes and I could not resist doing the

same to her gaze.

She grabbed at the high base of my cape collar to force me to

bend at her eye level. I yielded simply to her slight touch.

She then said in a low and intense voice "Make love to me, Jareth."

Well, She was a bold little thing, I would give her that much but

over all the offer startled me. I had never found a Labyrinthian to be so

abrupt and forceful. I admired her direct approach though and she was quite

pretty.

I pulled away from her as I attempted to maintain my dignity. I

would easily and willingly have taken her. I checked myself. Pretty as she

was she had not aroused an interest in me. My mind was willing, my heart was

ready but the important part… it was not reacting to her charms and I doubt

it would have. …It had not been reacting to stimuli for some time now.

Rather then acknowledge my own faults I decided to play the host

of social status and high position of kingly authority and power. I would

reject her offer like a proud gentleman to a simple peasant girl. I had done

that before when my personal package would decide to sleep as the rest of me

woke.

I looked down at a small crystal music box on her nightstand beside a

small lamp. It was shaped like an owl on a revolving, circular stand. I

picked it up to examine it as if I had not heard the young woman's offer.

I turned the small circular base key with a flick of my wrist and

heard the faint tinkling music. It made me think of the girl Sarah,

suddenly. She had been the only one to have solved my Labyrinth and to

forsake my power over her. A strange, empty melancholy gripped at my soul

for a moment.

I shook my head, trying to let go of the memory of her. I might have

loved Sarah but as I often do I had confused love with possession and in so I

had lost all hope of having her as my own. Losing the child, Toby was

nothing much to be concerned with but losing Sarah, that… that had shattered

me.

The quaint little music box had a pretty set of detailed owl's wings

and it's frosted crystal belly was proudly pushed outward as he sat on his

tiny crystal tree branch on the circular music box stand.

I placed down the little toy on to her nightstand and smiled at Jane

simply. I had to force the smile, having been depressed at my own lack of

arousal and memories of Sarah.

Jane had that sad rejected look of an abandoned puppy. It was not

that I did not want her, not at all. It was just that I…. Well, I was not

physically responding to the desire that I know was in me just then.

In a last ditch effort of my lusts I thought of Sarah in the ballroom,

in that scrumptious ball gown as she had been confused, dancing in my arms.

It failed. It only increased my deep melancholy.

"Love, I simply cannot do that I am a king and you are only a

child." I said to Jane with a false smile. "I simply would not be…

dignified."

I felt tension in the air.

Her eyes were pleading. "Am I not pretty enough?" she asked. She

seemed like she was about to cry.

I had fallen off of her pedestal she had set me upon. I had

inadvertently shattered her most precious dreams and her ideals of me. I was

no longer a god like beauty of a man to her. I think I had destroyed her

favourite fantasy and that I was truly sorry for. I thought that perhaps I

should not have come, maybe this had been a mistake on my part.

"No, no, it's not that. It's just that I… I can't." I had never

found myself stammering before over my own words. It was most embarrassing.

My desires were not responding with my body the way it naturally should have.

(IT's been this way for a while.) I was immortal but apparently not immune

to… failure.

She looked at me strangely. "But I've waited… I wanted you.. I

wanted you to be my...first." She said under her breath.

An excuse lay right there before me. "A gentleman does not take from

children." I said simply. "Now, I think that I have something that you might

want but unfortunately it is not the favour that you want from me."

I was just about ready to give her a crystal ball to show her dreams,

to replace the ones I had accidentally shattered. But then I decided against

that. Of course knowing young Labyrinth fans the dream would probably still

remain the same and I would be the center of it, making the gift an

uncomfortable offer to propose to her just now.

I tried to change the topic. The song "New age of Promise" was

playing.

"Must you listen to that?" I asked sharply.

"I like it!" She said harshly. "So if you didn't come here for

that, what did you come for?" She asked in her simple American accented voice

that I found strangely attractive.

"I came to pay you a visitation, Jane. You should be honoured that I

came."

I did not wish to leave just yet though the situation at this point

was quite awkward.

It was at that moment that the doorknob to the room turned suddenly

bedchamber door swung open and a rather large man entered the room. This was

Jane's father.

"Jane would you turn down the-" He saw me but only vaguely in the

room's darkness.

Oh, now this was going to be fun, I thought.

"What the?!?! Who the Hell are you?" He asked when he realized

that someone was standing in the darkness with his daughter.

I made a slight gesture and the girl's bedside lamp went on with

little effort of my magical skills. The man could now see me more clearly.

Apparently the only image of David Bowie this man had grown accustomed to was

through his daughters incessant watching of the video tape cassette of

Labyrinth and he did not see me as Jareth the goblin king at all…

The man leapt back with a start. "Oh, My God! I've gotta call the

press. An eighties rock star is trying to seduce my daughter! My god!" HE

looked just about ready for a heart attack.

The insult of being confused with HIM stabbed me.

"I believe that you must have me confused with my Earthly…

counter-part, sir. I am Jareth, the goblin king." I said, with a habitual

bow of politeness.

The repetition of having to introduce myself was growing rather

tiresome.

"Yeah, right." Said the man. "And I'm The queen of England.

You're nothin' but a has-been rock star with bad eighties hair!"

I must say that did not mind the insult toward David Bowie but to be

confused with him, that was an insult towards me! And that hair remark was

just out and out nasty.

I clenched my teeth and repressed my anger. I did my damnedest to

ignore his remark. I sighed and made a casual gesture with my hand, a

crystal ball appeared in my hand.

"Would you like for me to show you something?" I said to him. He

seemed interested though still quite angry that I was improperly in his,

innocent, daughter's bedchamber.

I tossed the crystal ball that I had materialized in my hand at him

and he caught it in his hands.

"What is it?" He asked. His expression was confused and blank. He

was questioning his conceptions of reality as I watched him.

Jane remained silent.

"It's a crystal, nothing more," I said "but if you turn it and look

in to it, it will show you your dreams. I had come here to offer that to

your daughter for her belief in me but apparently her faith is more in a

fifty-two-year old rock star then placed with me!" I snapped. "Do you want

it?"

He did not respond.

The girl's stereo exchanged compact discs with one that lay ready in

the automatic changer. "Under Pressure" was now playing.

Now not only was David Bowie mocking me and my situation with his

constant singing but the former music group Queen was doing the same as well

though up until his death I had always found Freddie Mercury as being an

attractive man. I did not wish to listen to that just now. I was tempted to

destroy the young girl's stereo system right then and there but I repressed

my urge to destroy it. I tried to keep calm and repress my anger. I had to

keep my casual composure.

I turned away from them, mildly disgusted from the over all botched

visitation. The man who now held the crystal and was enthralled with

whatever it was he saw in it was about to say something but it was too late.

I had made my exit and nothing on Earth or The Underground for that matter

was going to make me go back there any time soon.

With my pride bruised I returned to my study. It was nearing

13:44 AM.

I looked at a mirror that hung on the wall before going to write

this humiliating experience down in my private journal. I saw my own

handsome reflection and thought that how even in a situation like that I was

still quite good looking. I most certainly was and am a handsome, eternal

devil. …And that is when IT finally reacted. ... Well, it was a bit

delayed, I must say…

A goblin just leaped from the window, thinking that he could fly. I

think he just hit the pavement below. ...Yes, he definitely hit the ground.

The others are laughing hysterically, damned idiots that they are. The poor

beast must have cracked his skull open.

It's been a long night. I think that I shall retire to my bed now.

Sincerely,

Jareth

To:

Subject: Fwd: JARETH 2

From:

Date: Thu, 21 Oct 1999 19:02:52 EDT

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(This is not the same as the first one, I promise)

Hello Everyone,

I think that you might enjoy this. Here is another entrée from the

journal of The Goblin king.

I sort of "borrowed" this from the journal of a close…. Friend if

he doesn't murder me of course.

Raven

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Entrée 2211A: (The hyper mortals)

I suppose that considering all of what just had happened that everything

has worked out as well as can be expected. I had lost again only this time

contrary to what some might think I do believe that this time it was truly

for the best that I had not kept what was supposed to by right be mine. It

is for the best this time that I did not get what I had originally desired

this day. This I most definitely know for certain.

It all began on this, a rather typical afternoon here in my kingdom.

It was a warm day and my goblin court was beginning to give me a terrible

headache. My moronic goblin minions were laughing, skipping about the room

like small children. At least they were not smashing anything about that was

fragile or of extreme value to me. So far today they had not yet destroyed

anything I held of sentimental or of financial value. I suppose that meant

that my day had started off on a fairly positive note. Of course when you

are king of your own realm who really needs wealth anyway?

My ignorant little goblins had just learned the mortal game of

Hopscotch. How they had managed to pick up on this is beyond my

comprehension because I do know that my idiotic goblins can hardly count to

ten with their fingers or even correctly add one and one with a calculating

device.

I could not repress my own disgust at the mentality of my own feeble

minded minions, I suppose that I never could. It is just the same old

repeating song of my life I suppose.

Well, now I really should not complain much about that, my stupid

goblin folk. It makes tax collecting here sever so uncomplex, really. They

just give me anything and everything that they find that might be of some

value financially. For them this can be anything from an old boot lace to a

diamond engagement ring from the mortal realm.

I sat casually in the throne room at my usual position as the grand

high master of The Underground. My right leg was draped over the arm of the

chair as I leaned back on my side. I tapped a small rhythm with my

gentleman's walking stick with the diamond handle against the bamboo,

in-curved chair arm.

I was beginning to get quite a headache from the nonsense of the

more rational goblins at play with Hopscotch.

I began to rub my temples with my right hand's index and middle

fingers as my other hand made a small, rhythmic little tune by tapping the

walking stick against the arm of the throne.

The dingy, yellowish walls of the room were stained in every form

of filth imaginable. It smelled like a chicken coop in here. Why did my

minions insist upon brining barnyard animals in to the castle? Dear God, was

that goat dung in the corner there? I was more then a little afraid to

check. It sure smelled like it. I would have to have the goblins attempt to

clean that up for themselves later, even with magical powers I did not wish

to touch that filth. Janitorial or custodial labor was not a dignified job

for a king of any social or political status, of course a man of any station,

born of low class or high, NO ONE should have to deal with... well THIS at

all.

I am very unhappy.

I shut my eyes and breathed through my mouth to try and deny the

barnyard like, flatulent, rancid, reeking, stench of the room.

I pretended for a moment, using my favourite personal fantasy,

that I was a mortal man sitting on Earth. I imagined that I was in an

American New York City Greenwich village studio apartment, surrounded not by

moronic goblins but by colourful, opened jars, bottles and cans of fresh

paints, stencils and other various art supplies. For a moment I merely

pretended that I was not the frustrated master of an alternate reality but

simply an artist who had dreamed up this nightmarish Hellhole. And being that

simple, human artist in the modern human world I would soon awaken to find my

latest piece, a painting of this very Labyrinth and my castle in the center

of it on sale at an auction in New York City. Now that is a place where an

eccentric man like myself in mortal form would be actually… welcomed.

I sighed.

I decided right then and there to accept the futile, hopelessness

of my own situation and I would keep my secret yearning to myself. No one

must ever know of my own secret desires. No one must know that the man who

can offer dreams has dreams of his very own that must forever remain

unfulfilled and unknown by any.

For a long moment I held the image of the New York City apartment in

my head. I held tight to it, refusing to let go of it for the sake of my own

world.

I sighed knowing that this would never be. Do to my birthright I

would be master of this kingdom for all of eternity or until I find I somehow

have an heir and that heir would reach adulthood, then and only then I would

be able to slip off and never return. And I knew what I would do then if

this were accomplished. I had been dreaming of it for many years. I would

hide among mortals on Earth. I would try to forget this life all together

once and for all. Ah, what a sweet and truly glorious dream that it was too.

It was a true, real shame that it would have to eventually come to an end.

Even I cannot make every dream come true. No one has ever offered me my own

dreams and yet I can give so many theirs. ...A part of the curse that is my

existence, I suppose. I wonder what I had done so wrong in my last life that

I am in penance like this. Who exactly had I killed back then?

I very nearly believed that an escape from my own position in my life

was possible but then something brought me back to my own reality. Oh, that

was more then a little unfair. Life had never been very fair to me. Why was

I being forced from my dreams so abruptly? Would I be here forever and ever

and ever? Ah, well, I mused, it's only forever, it's not long at all…

My eyes opened wide suddenly. I heard it a good moment before any of

my minions could have. On Earth two young girls had just wished themselves

away to my world having said the unmistakable words "We wish the goblins

would come and take us away right now" in unison.

Oh, how splendid I thought the rest of that day might be. A

thousand mischievous little ideas flashed through my mind as what I could do

with these two, innocent young mortals.

All the goblins stopped their idiocy abruptly. One goblin that was

standing precariously on one foot toppled over on to three more who sat on

the floor. The rest of them began to laugh idiotically at this. They had

stopped because of the call but had forgotten it just as quickly as they had

heard it.

"You heard them!" I snapped. "Go on, move! To Earth with you all,

now! Go on! Move!"

I placed down the walking stick and shifted my position ever so

slightly on my throne. My bum was getting a trifle bit sore and my left hand

was numb from lack of blood circulation, it had fallen asleep. Even my very

limbs were bored at this point.

I was feeling a bit lazy and decided to just idly sit by while my

goblins went about their chore of fetching my (victims) guests.

In a moment the two young American girls stood before me, a dozen

or so goblins had carried them away from their little world of pop culture,

rock music videos, microwave suppers and idiotic television sitcoms and

brought them to my reality, my world.

They both looked about fifteen or sixteen years of age, these two

tender young mortals. I smiled at this. They were most definitely too old

to be transformed in to goblins and certainly far too young for my fair take

of personal pleasures.

…But then again, who is to say what is too young for an immortal man?

Who can put a time limit on one who is timeless, really? Ah, but I was not

really all that aroused physically by them anyway, pretty though they were.

I knew their names and a great deal about them at first glance. I

could see in to their deepest dreams. The two girls were fairly typical

Earth teenagers from what I could surmise.

The shorter of the two, a slender little thing with short black hair

was named Miranda. She was fairly average though her dark almond shaped eyes

were a pretty sight.

The taller and more full-figured of the two, a plump, baby doll

like thing was Jennifer. She had puffy, reddish cheeks and held the innocent

expression of a china doll. Somehow I thought this was lovely. I mused at

this, a walking china doll wished away to a land where people are my

playthings to do with, as I would like. I had to stop myself from laughing

at this and clear my amused countenance of emotion quickly. Only fools laugh

at their own jokes.

I tired hard not to smile too much. My face has always been far

too expressive. I had to maintain a distance, an emotional detachment towards

them.

Again came the painful thought that I had no one with the slightest

bit of intellectual standing to converse with. I was ever constantly

surrounded by my idiot goblins and never once had the chance to ever really

express my true thoughts or feelings to another. A frustrating depression,

perhaps even loneliness clutched at me.

Miranda spoke up first. Jennifer just stared wide-eyed at the

goblins that watched them in awe. The goblins with such simple minds

probably could not even remember what mortal girls were supposed to have

looked like as they stared at these two with wonder and apparent amazement.

…Or were they just staring blankly at the shiny buttons of the shorter one's

autumn jacket? I could not quite tell which. Jennifer was confused. Miranda

seemed more outraged then confused and over all simply inconvenienced by the

whole abduction.

"My God, you're him aren't you? You're really, really him? You are

the goblin king!" Said Miranda.

"Yes, apparently, so I am." I said with an irrepressible, playful,

mischievous little grin playing on my lips. "I am Jareth. And you two are

now mine to do with as I see fit."

"Yours?!?!" Miranda was infuriated. She was such a strong willed

thing and the other seemed so very passive. "I don't belong to anyone!"

I quickly formed and crystal ball in my right hand as I now sat

properly up right for my two young guests. I began to play with the crystal

ball in my hands. "Oh, I do beg to differ, my dear. I am king here. You

wished yourselves here so there for I am your master." I said in a simple

matter of fact tome of voice.

The innocent, bleached blond haired girl, the walking china doll,

Jennifer began to tremble. She must have thought that I was going to use the

crystal against her or her loud mouthed companion, Miranda. I smiled at her

ever so delicious fear of my power. Well, for once someone got the "Just

fear me..." part down right.

Miranda clenched her hands in to fists. "Let us go… NOW!"

"I am afraid that is simply not possible, my dear." I said simply as

the crystal ball in my hand evaporated in to oblivion. I placed my hands

together in the form of a steeple.

"And why not?" She asked.

"Even I have rules to follow. You asked to be taken." I said with a

slight, fleeting gesture. "I took you. What's said is said. You are mine

now, so is the rule of The Labyrinth, 'What's said is said.'"

"We… we, didn't mean it." Jennifer stammered from behind the smaller

yet obviously more forceful of the two.

"Oh, didn't you?" I asked slyly. "Well, it most certainly could not

have worked unless you meant it when you asked to be taken away."

I stood up and walked over to the opened window over viewing The

Goblin City and the junk yard as well as a good portion of The Labyrinth that

seemed to spread out of infinity below me.

"Now, you two just make yourselves at home." I said. "You are now

official members of my royal court." I turned away from the window now to

face them. "Now, that is being generous of me. How does that sound, hmm?

Wouldn't you both like to live in the castle as members of my court?"

The two looked at each other. Miranda stepped over to me. "Jennifer

and I need to discuss it in private."

I grinned. "But of course take your time."

I made a gesture with my hand and a door along the back wall of the

room appeared.

"You two may go in there to discuss it and or think it over. I shall

expect you to have a decision within the hour upon your opinion of your new

position here. Even if you do not like the idea all that much you shall

still remain mine… for all eternity.." I laughed.

Miranda took Jennifer's hand and basically dragged her with her in to

the room.

Now of course this simply meant that I simply had to eavesdrop. I

formed a crystal ball in my hands and could see in to the small windowless

room perfectly. A single candle burned on the oak table in the center of the

room.

"How are we going to get out of this?" Asked Jennifer, who's voice

no longer seemed small and shaky as it had been in my presence.

"I don't know, Jen." Said Miranda. "I kind of like it here. I

don't mind the idea of living in his castle all that much." She then made a

gesture with her hand as if holding something small and round. I think she

was giving a signal to the other that she could sense that I was watching

them through a crystal orb.

Well, that was just too easy. I had won, apparently. And it would be

interesting to see what intellectual beings such as mortals would be like in

my court. I would be able to remove some of the burden of the kingdom from

myself and place it on to the shoulders of those two brats.

I threw the crystal in to the air and it disappeared. This was

going to be so marvelous. I had not kept mortals in my kingdom in a long

time, especially to beauties such as these.

The two young girls emerged from the other room and as they did so

the door to the room from behind them as they made their exit vanished. The

room once no longer needed now no longer existed. It had lost it's purpose

for existence and in so faded in to oblivion.

"All right." Said Miranda with a grin that seemed as sly as one of

my own as she folded her arms. "We'll work for you."

"Good." I said. I did not bother to point out to them that I was

not actually going to give them a choice in the matter. "I'll have a goblin

show you to your quarters."

"Wait!" Said Miranda as she held out her hand. "I have some ideas

for the kingdom."

On the job one day and she already had some ideas. I thought this

was marvelous. I raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"

"Well," She said stepping over to me. "I think we should make David

Bowie's birthday a national holiday."

"WHAT?!?!" I was startled.

Jennifer no longer seemed so scared now stood along side her

companion. "Yes, and I think we should have peach eating day. Enchanted

peaches for everyone and everything!"

"Absolutely not!" Were they insane?

Miranda spoke up. "I think the Labyrinth should be torn down.

Have you ever considered putting up a mini-mall, Jareth?"

"A MIN-MALL!?! Are you out of your mind?"

"Oh, yes very. We both are." Miranda then wrapped her arm around

Jennifer.

Jennifer took her turn. "I think we should all go have tea with the

little blue worm."

Miranda spoke now. "I think the wise man with the bird hat should

be your royal adviser."

Jennifer spoke. "What about we all sit down and watch the British

version of "The man who fall to Earth," and 'the part' again and again and

again."

Miranda laughed at this. "Yeah!"

I was infuriated. "No. No! And NO! Absolutely not! You two are

insane. Now see here, I am your master and I demand that you be reasonable."

"You can't demand reason from reasonless children, Jerry. It's

just not possible." Said Miranda.

"Hey," Said Jennifer. "Let's go get my CD player and blast my

Classic Queen album!"

: "All right. Now you're talking!" Miranda responded

The two began to then screech on top of their lungs, quite deliberately out

of tune what sounded like "A kind of Magic."

Even my goblins moaned and shrieked in terror.

I covered my ears. "No, stop it!. Get the Hell out of here! Now!

You two are banished from this kingdom forever!"

I quickly made a blue glowing vortex appear in front of them with a

simple waving, rotating gesture of my hand as the vortex made a spiraling

inward motion leading to where they had been taken from Earth.

The two did not delay in leaping through.

I formed a crystal ball in my hands. I had never seen such idiocy

before in mortal beings and I began to wonder just how many American

teenagers were like that today.

I saw them clearly in a small well-lit bedchamber on Earth from the

tiny crystal that I held now in my hand.

"Well, that was fun." Said Miranda with a grin as she looked at

herself in the mirror.

"Yeah, what do we do now?"

"Well, I have some left over birthday money and there's a sale on

bus tickets to New Orleans. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" She said.

"Yeah, let's go harass The vampire Lestat."

"Right on." She said.

I suppose this little experience doe teach me a bit of a lesson on

not to assume a personality or nature by the ephemeral appearance of the

being I dare to judge. I think that I need to realize here that even a couple

of teenaged humans can be just as bad or ever perhaps worse then a mindless,

smelly pack of goblins. After all I must accept that I am master of a world

"Where everything seems possible and nothing is what it seems."

I think that I shall retire for the evening now. I just hope for

the sake of my mental state that it's a dreamless sleep. Though I do have an

immortal form I do still house a human mind that is vulnerable to desire,

stress and perhaps even a little bit of what some might call madness. Ah,

but what is sanity anyway? Everyone in any world has problems. I highly

doubt that anyone is truly sane in any world. Those why would dare to say

otherwise are either fools or they are lying. Everyone has problems.

I really do not know if I had actually lost on this one but right

now a certain French vampire has my deepest sympathy.

Sincerely,

Jareth

To:

Subject: Fwd: JARETH 3

From:

Date: Thu, 21 Oct 1999 19:03:07 EDT

--------

(WARNING: holds references to the Labyrinth AOL role playing game and

some players.)

(i am ONLY posting this one because Kim begged me to. Take it up with

her if you don't like his highness's journal entree.)

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Entry 23434312B: (Oporation Role playing game)

Well, now, everything that I had conceived in my mind to create, I

must say is going according to my initial design quite well. It is all going

just swimmingly to tell the truth of it. It is now October fifth, 1999 on

Earth and my precise long term planing has gathered not only labyrinth

e-mailing list members (some listians) but also random fans, followers and

role playing game people to worship and dream of me.

I must say that it was rather ingenious of me to allow that

naive, Raven to try and solve the Labyrinth on the condition of only giving

one hour in which to solve it all. Raven's arrogance made it impossible to

decline my challenge even though I believe that Raven knew that failure was

eminent. Oh, the look on that face as failure struck in was just so perfect.

It was just so priceless. I could not help but laugh at the pathetic thing

that sat miserable in my throne room having lost the freedom of the dream

consciousness over to me as prize for losing to my challenge.

All of July as Raven had sought refuge from reality in an isolated

cabin deep in the mountains with only a computer as access to the rest of the

world I set the initial dawning of my plot in to motion. In this time I

carefully, painstaking, over a precise, time releasing period had filled

Raven's head with dreams convincing Raven that I held power of that sate of

being for that poor thing.

A fair trade was in order. Once Raven, by the grace of fate had joined

the Labyrinth discussion and fan fiction e-mailing list while up there in the

mountains I realized that Raven was then keeping track and making

acquaintances by instant message with nearly all of America On-line Labyrinth

fans.

Finally I planted the idea, the tiny seed in the one calling

herself Audrey and Rachel's heads to desire a Labyrinth role-playing game for

America online members. Raven, having never organized even a bed room… ever

was called in to a private chat room with those two and given the suggestion

to form the role playing game for them, merely to organize it.

That's when I decided to give the arrogant bastard some amusement

and made Raven agree on the terms of taking the role of Jareth. Raven did,

what Audrey thought to be so well that Audrey began to suspect that Raven was

in actuality David Bowie (Who by this would mean to have had a less of a

social life then I thought possible). Upon discovering this little

accusation I nearly fell over laughing at poor, confused Raven. Just to keep

my actor of ME happy I soon put a stop to that with a little, somewhat

complex mind manipulation. Raven invoked a few small and odd talents for

Audrey and Rachel, mere parlor tricks, to tell the truth, that I think anyone

could accomplish and gave them a story that Raven was actually an alien from

another world. I still was laughing. I teased Raven, saying "David Bowie IS

an alien."

Raven threatened that if the accusations of being HIM did not stop

that I should find myself a new Jareth. A war ensued, I reminded Raven of

the Labyrinth journey failure and so on and so forth until finally I removed

that silly notion of David Bowie playing me… AGAIN from Audrey's and Rachel's

minds.

Raven and I then made the deal. Raven would play me indefinitely

and I would leave the dreams be. The freedom of dreams in exchange for a

nightly performance of me until I would lose interest… which, considering my

attention span can be a very long, long time. Raven, I knew could pull it

off. Raven has portrayed a lot of things. Hell, Raven has half the players

convinced that Raven is an alien now, better then the other idea I would

think. Sometimes I suspect that alien thing might just be true… I mean….

That thing is just strange.

Audrey took the role of Sarah, who in the game is my wife, and

innovative little Rachel played Adalia, a fairy and a former lover of mine.

Raven took the role of ME and then, having a not so great

relationship with other listians, with a deep fears of flaming (hate mail),

spammed (sent e-mail advertisements to) the Labyrinth e-mailing list for

other players. Soon came Mel and then Billy. And then came Danielle, and

Jerrie, a few that did not remain (cowards) and dear Kimberlee whom with I

was already aquatinted as her being a fan fiction e-mailing list, Listian I

had visited her quite a few times and allowed her to write some fantasy work

about me. And what started with three turned to four, then ten, then

fifteen, then twenty, and then thirty five…

At first I had my reasonable doubts about the "strange one" but Raven

managed to keep order and play me rather well, I would only hope. Raven does

as best as possible considering that NO ONE can really ever take MY place.

…The only problem was that the game, as I eavesdropped on it from

time to time, watching over the shoulders of various players without them

realizing (Kimberlee is so useful, wouldn't you think?) was that I noticed

that the stories, though some rather interesting were lacking something.

They lacked long, on going or simply truly intense plots. …Then it hit me

abruptly. Who better to bring in an intense story then the intense role

player, Kimberlee?

I paid another visitation to my old acquaintance, Raven. I made it a

point to remind Raven of what was owed to me. Raven agreed with me that the

plots in the game were lacking. Having seen Kimberlee portray Darkness

rather well but having her plots shot down by Raven's rag-tag little troop of

players I decided that Kimberlee was just what the game needed. I did not

wish to give the poor dear a nervous break down. From what I saw Kimberlee

was in actuality half the role players of an Anne Rice based game, the Rhydin

America online role-playing world and in my Labyrinth. Kimberlee's clever,

darker, evil streak was perfect to spice up the game that was now growing as

stale as left over goblin bread.

Remembering that horrid FICTIONAL story of my origination by

Raven I decided that I had no other alternative but to manipulate that in to

a game plot for all of them. I gave Raven permission to use that morbidly

insulting version of my kingly coronation the tale Raven called "Prince of

the Goblins" and to allow my perfect actress, Kimberlee to adapt from there a

nice, intense plot that would have a long term effect in the game. I truly

detest that little fan fiction.

Upon visitations I played the naïve fool for Kimberlee that I knew

nothing of the game. Though sometimes I did miss what happened, (rather like

a daytime, romantic drama based around... well… ME) I did have a fair idea of

what Raven was doing with my role. I just needed to know for sure of others

thought the portrayal of me was accurate.

As I said earlier, I had my doubts. And I held these doubts for a

good reason too. I mean when I found Raven, "The strange one" was playing a

female teenaged vampire in Rhydin, and growing rather bored of it too, I

might add. Now that is a definite far cry from playing me, I must say. …But

then I had to remind myself that Raven had a natural, near instinctive talent

of manipulating people and taking perspectives. (That's it! I am going to

take that one for blood tests on Earth to see if we are in actuality

related.) Even I do not really understand that one.

Now I had a keystone to center the game steadily and keep it alive and

fresh, Kimberlee. I just had to figure out how to keep that prima donna

happy so that she would not walk out on that little, half way sane troop.

Actors! They give me a headache, the whole bloody lot of them. No wonder I

left Raven in charge of them. Who knows just what would happen to that

ramshackle little world if Kimberlee dared to leave it? I must ALWAYS get

what I want and what I want right now is for that game to survive and I am

willing to do whatever it takes to do that. The more the fantasies revolve

around me, the more a subconscious belief in me is formed and the more

powerful I become.

Actors! It is just so damned frustrating. Actors, why must they be

so temperamental?

I did not have half as much trouble with the filming of the movie

Labyrinth... Well, all except for the casting when I was told that David

Bowie was going to be me. I thought Jim Henson was out of his mind. He had

to have been out of his skull to allow HIM to play me.

As for Kimberlee, I knew that there was tension between her and

Rachel. If the quarrelling and petty bickering did not stop soon I would be

forced to manipulate an appearance within Kimberlee's dreams to teach her

some patience and humility towards the incompetent beings of any reality.

Neil, "the shiny goblin" escaped from his cage the other week and is

now an official member of the America on line Labyrinth role-playing game. I

had no idea that any of MY goblins could type.

Kimberlee has taken the burden of providing plots of the game when

Raven is (Often) burnt out. Kimberlee would create a story and the rest

would just flow with it. I just wish that her and the ever hyper and insane,

Rachel would just get along.

Sometimes I wish to throw that one, Rachel in to the bog of

eternal stench. She has come up with some smashing plot ideas but over all I

think that she is quite mad. I think that she had lost her tender young

mind, years and years ago. Rachel is insane but I must say that I do so love

to have her around in the game. She keeps that brat Raven on Raven's toes.

And she amuses 'Audrey'. The two are a lot like close siblings.

Meantime, Kimberlee and Tom (the game's vampire, Lestat) bickered

in instant messages about control over the character of Darkness (from the

film Legend), whining about Raven's rule about character manipulations

because the two find it necessary to act like old lovers.

That quarreling is just amusing between those two, but the serious

battles… I would rather the "insane one" (Rachel) and "the genius"

(Kimberlee) and the "strange one" (Raven) work together to create a dandy of

a plot then to see them all going for the other's throat, and over such petty

things too. Things, such as- worthless and unpublishable fan fictions, hyper

activity, plot clashes, plot stealing, manipulating or spot light hogging, or

simply refusing to let the other do their own thing. I wish those two with

the strong personalities would somehow just work things out once and for all.

Honestly, they are worse then a pack of wild goblins and this is

(sarcastic) just the perfect time for Raven to play the passive, I must say!

I really should go and force that one to take charge or "I" will!

But I should not say anything, really. The bickering for now has

stopped. I may accidentally jinx it all with my ranting. And if Kimberlee

(sweet dear that she sometimes can be) threatens to walk from the game I

swear that I will send her nightmares that she would not be able to imagine

or conceive of for herself. That shaft of helping hands can be not so

helpful… ß--insert malicious laughter here

Yes, now the game is constant, save for the nights Raven decides to

disappear and or skip town on me. The little brat does not ever give notice

to me in advance, the inconsiderate lunatic.

I visited darling, constantly creative and somewhat evil

Kimberlee again recently. She turned my visitation in to a strange

commercial of sorts for the role playing game. Shameless promotions... and

yet Raven was the one accused of being David Bowie, how fickle. Apparently,

though a little chaotic (like the real kingdom) the game is running as it

should be, interesting, full of passion and with a lot of strange and

unexpected occurrences.

I wish that my real daily life was that amusing.

Ah, well, it's time to make a visitation to the game's "Christine"

(under another name my daughter who plays my sister)…. I think I maybe

should cross out that little thing about my life not being so amusing. And I

really should get on Raven's arse about Tom having never actually seen the

movie Labyrinth. That's just shameful. A Labyrinth player not knowing ME.

Well, now, I must be off for now. I shall talk with Raven. I

think Raven is the only one I allow to regularly be at my castle though

usually I see to it that Raven is in restraints when within five feet of me.

I do not trust that one, I know Raven too well. ...And with that mind maybe

Raven really is an alien from another world, who's to say? Hell, I live in

The Underground for God's sake. Anything is possible. And that one is…

very, very odd.

Now that I know I have accomplished this. I made this role

playing game idea real, like a constant out pouring of a faith in fantasy

about me, invoking in me more power then I could imagine I think that I shall

like to go out and visit some of my player's dreams. I think Raven needs to

be reminded who is really in control here and who has always been in control.

And I think that Kimberlee might just about be due for another visitation

soon.

Sincerely,

Jareth

To:

Subject: Fwd: JARETH 4

From:

Date: Thu, 21 Oct 1999 19:03:23 EDT

--------

Hello again Everyone,

Yes, I have another one.

I think that you might enjoy this. Here is another entrée from the

journal of The Goblin King.

I sort of "borrowed" this from the journal of a close…. Friend if

he doesn't murder me of course.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Entrée 2257-CB3: (A day on Earth)

On Earth it is now June of the year 1987. I had succeeded in having

"Labyrinth" the movie released in to the cinema some time last December in

the United States of America on Earth. I had fancied upon it's release last

year about what would become of that film thirteen years from now. Would the

attention spans of mortals withstand and hold out by then? Would there still

be half insane teenagers willing to worship me just for being me and who

would know every word of that film by heart? Ah, it was a charming idea.

What would happen in thirteen years with this little plot of mine in creating

that movie idea in Jim Henson and then getting George Lucas involved? I must

admit that was pure genius on my part. I could not think of a better team

of innovators to create that film then Jim Henson and George Lucas. The film

has done a splendid job in bringing my world and my actual being back in to

the pubic eye on Planet Earth.

Here in The Underground it is now day twenty-seven of the of the

large public Goblin sugar rush in the Goblin City, which had weeks ago

escalated up to my very castle's court. The entire Goblin population has

been treating the discovery of sweets from the human world like forbidden,

intoxicating, emotionally stimulating drugs of the under belly of the human

world. It appears that somehow the nineteen sixties in it's own way has

finally found it's way here to The Underground. I still would like to know

who the moronic buffoon was who had introduced my goblins to Earthly

confections such as Snickers chocolate bars. Who ever it was, I swear shall

pay dearly for this annoyance. How any person from the mortal realm could

have gotten passed the gates of The Goblin City without my notice or the

notice of my goblin guards is beyond me. The last one to accomplish this

improbable and very nearly impossible feat was Sarah and she had not returned

here since forsaking my powers over her.

Strangely enough I missed that girl terribly. Not many had come in

to the Labyrinth in a long time, let alone had bothered and tried and proved

to be capable to have actually solved my Labyrinth.

Sarah had been the only one to have solved my Labyrinth in all my many

years as being The Goblin King (since about 886 AD on Earth) and to forsake

my power over her.

To think of Sarah brings in to my soul a deep longing. A strange,

empty melancholy gripped at my soul for a moment. It shall pass… I hope… In

time…

I have been trying to let go of the memory of her, that precious

thing, that girl, Sarah. I might have loved Sarah but as I often do I had

confused love with possession and in so I had lost all hope of having her as

my own. Losing the child, Toby was practically nothing much to be concerned

with but losing Sarah, that… well, that had shattered me like a fragile

crystal ball in a monstrous grip of ungentle hands.

I have grown very intolerant and impatient these last few days

with my own imbecilic minion who are leaping around right now all over the

castle. I think that if I do not leave for a short holiday soon that I

surely may go out of my head.

I feel a bit melancholy; so very depressed this evening as well as

bored out of my skull. I need some amusement

Over all I suppose that it is a lovely night here. The moon is a

fanatic, lovely crystal blue and the evening is still quite young. It is

really, aesthetically speaking, of course, a rather beautiful night. In

fact, it is a shame actually that my goblins would never understand, care or

notice if it was a beautiful evening or not. I think that I would give up

being The Goblin King if I only could. I do not care much for this position

at all, a curse being a human in appearance, immortal in form and having an

intellect of any intelligent man trapped among idiots. I am rather surprised

at my own stamina and will at having not lost my mind over it all just yet.

…though I do fear that I soon may.

I am now growing rather bored and this situation is quite tiresome.

I think that it is now high time that I take my leave for a short while from

this dreadfully dreary place I have the burden of calling not just my home

but simply mine.

I have just gotten the notion in to my head to take a short trek

to planet Earth for a spell. I cannot tolerate it here. I need a moment

wholly and entirely to and for only myself. I think that I as well as any

other is entitled to that, a bit of time off from there own existence. …Of

course there is death for some. Who really wants to live forever?

I shall finish this entrée upon my return.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Entrée 2257-CB3 Part 2:

I have just returned from my little trip to Planet Earth. I must say

that it was one of my more interesting journeys to Earth for me in a rather

long while. It was quite a terrific bit of a fun little venture to tell the

truth. It was not much of a relaxing thing though over all, I must say.

Once I had gotten the idea to abandon my position as The King of the

Goblins for a short while I set out to do it. My natural and impulsive

nature lead me to do it without a moments questioning to allow of second

thought. I did not give notice of what I proposed to do of that I would be

gone for a time in advance. I knew then that my goblins would fair fine

without me for a short time and more then likely it would be that they would

not notice my absence at all.

I am beginning to fear that I am beginning to grow as dreary and as drab as

this castle and this kingdom itself.

I closed my journal upon writing the fist portion of this particular

entrée and left it on my desk in my study.

I took it in to my head that I wished to be in New York City. A

moment of wooziness came as telaportation often causes within me. I blinked

several times, waiting for the bright magical sparklets to settle around me.

I was standing in a New York City alley.

It was noon here. It had been night in The Underground. It took

me a moment to adapt to the alien environment. Of course I had come here

several times before but usually with a sole purpose in mind. Right now I

had no purpose. I had just come because I simply had felt like coming.

Now, I had to make my appearance a bit less conspicuous here. I

thought for a moment on what I wanted to look like while visiting this, the

mortal realm. First I changed my countenance to bear an appearance of one

looking with the image of ten years younger then my usual physical

appearance. I then decided on having a short hair cut, though still blond.

I would wear tight jeans and a light black T-shirt and hooded autumn jacket.

Upon thinking this a tingling sensation took my whole body. I knew

the change had occurred as I had wished for it to. I looked like a fairly

average man though my eyes did remain miss-matched in appearance.

I frowned.

I did not like conforming much to the image that a society would

accept but I was not really in a mood to draw much attention to myself. I

would, I hoped, dress in my more comfortable attire and appear in my usual

form upon my next visit to Earth when I would want the public notification of

others and would not be bothered by the judgments of my usual eccentrics.

I checked my face's appearance in a puddle of cloudy rainwater. I

looked just fine, I thought. My eyes were still miss-matched in colouration

and the one pupil was still a bit darker and larger then the other. I could

easily hide this with a pair of sunglasses. I held out my hand and a pair of

designer sunglasses appeared. I placed these on over my eyes and walked out

to the street.

I felt a trifle bit awkward in the strange, foreign environment that

is Planet Earth. I had come there so often and yet I still would not grow

used to it. For today I would be "Jeremy Kingston".

I walked down the street rather casually along the sidewalk. The loud

sounds of the traffic did not bother me as much as it should have.

Considering what I had been exposed to in my own kingdom these last few weeks

this American city was actually rather quiet and orderly.

A small record store stood on the corner. Well now, this would be

fun, I thought. I might as well go in there and listen to the latest sounds

of eighties rock music. Maybe, I thought, I should get my hands on the

soundtrack to the movie adaptation of Sarah's little adventure through my

Labyrinth. Damn it, why couldn't I get her out of my head? It was driving

me insane.

I stepped in to the store and looked about casually. There was no

one here at the moment save for a single young woman who sat behind a mettle,

computerized cash register machine. She was a plane young woman who took

almost no notice of me at all from behind her polished oak store counter.

She did not really acknowledge me so I did not acknowledge her. I glanced at

her only once upon entering.

She had been filing her painted, pink fingernails. Her bright red

hair was extremely thick and curly. She popped a large bubble of pink,

strawberry flavoured, (I can only assume) bubble gum that she was chewing.

I moved silently over to the movie soundtrack section. I fumbled

through the alphabetical ordered arrangement to "L". Finally I found it,

"The Labyrinth motion picture soundtrack." I looked at the image of the

front cover.

For once, I thought, David Bowie had done something right. I read

over the track titles and smiled. I loved all of the songs save for one that

I thought was useless. He had not even been the one to really perform it.

But the other songs I thought were just fantastic.

I was actually pleased at what he had accomplished with that film

soundtrack. David Bowie had written, performed and composed those songs as

if he had actually been there. I suppose it had been a good idea to

subliminally implant ideas and bits of information about my world in to his

head during the early stages of the film's production. It was really my

doing that he had refused to play Jareth until they had a script he would

accept. He had not accepted the first five original versions of the script

to play Jareth. Why couldn't they get that story right? By the time Terry

Jones had finally gotten his job right, in getting the story down correctly.

I was just about ready to strangle Jim Henson for never paying attention to

the tale I was trying to tell him through his dreams. And I had sent goblins

to Brian Froud so that he would know just what he was getting himself in to

with this project. That man is the only man I can think of who was not at

all startled by the sight of living goblins in his bedchamber. Of course, he

probably keeps pet fairies in his toilet. Personally I loath small pixies.

Pixies are such nasty little things, rather like humanoid misquotes. They

over populate in the warm seasons in The Underground and their bites are

painful and annoying.

I placed down the album and reached in to my empty pocket, A nice

wad of American dollars appeared in my hand. I would buy the soundtrack.

Just then the door to the record store swung open. A man with two

larger men beside him entered the store. The small chime above the door

sounded to announce his entrance as it had done when I had walked in to the

store. He seemed fairly casual considering…

I stumbled back, startled at this sight. Shouldn't HE have been on

tour? Wasn't HE supposed to be in London right now?

I quickly hid behind a display of the new Lost boys motion picture

soundtrack freshly released.

I could not believe it. Of all the bad luck. I come to Earth once in

God knows how many months and I had to be in the same little, no named music

store as David Bowie!

It was unmistakably him.

David stepped over to the counter as I quickly made myself invisible

to human eyes.

"Excuse me." He said simply to the girl behind the counter. "I am

afraid that I am a bit of a spot. I am afraid that I am in a bit of a rather

awkward situation."

HE was in an awkward situation?!? I wanted my damned soundtrack.

And I was not leaving without it and yet I was trapped in a small, generic

music store with HIM. I could easily have disappeared but not without the

soundtrack and I was not in the mod to play the petty shoplifter.

The girl placed down her nail file and looked at HIM blankly.

"You're him, aren't you?" She asked.

He smiled. "Yes. I am." He then pointed out the glass storefront

window to a black, extremely new and expensive looking car parked across the

street. "It appears that we have gotten in to a spot of trouble. We have

gotten a flat tire. May I use your telephone? I need to contact my people

down town."

The girl readily handed him the small white, curly cord telephone

beside her on the counter. She seemed very nervous in HIS presence..

I think it was then that my impulsive side caught me and I decided to

use my situation to my advantage in having just a bit of fun, without doing

any truly serious harm to HIM. Taking my USUAL, flamboyant form as The

Goblin King I made my presence known as I stepped over to the David and his

two servants at the counter.

I ignored the shifting gaze of the strong arms that stood with him

but I placed down The Labyrinth soundtrack on the counter. David was on the

telephone with what might have been an agent.

"Excuse me, love but how much is this?" I asked the young girl

who seemed like she was ready to vomit from the intense strain this situation

was putting on her.

She then give me the price, reading it off of the little tag on

the plastic wrapping and I quickly paid for the Labyrinth soundtrack.

I turned and smiled at HIM as my soundtrack was placed in to a

paper bag. The woman tried to ignore the fact that I looked so similar to

HIM as HE had looked on the soundtrack cover.

HE had been saying something over the telephone about not being able

to make it in time for a dinner party down town but now stopped. I wanted to

laugh at him.

The colour rushed out of HIS face. HIS eyes went wide. HE did not know

what to think or say.

"Hello, David." I said simply and strangely fondly as if I were an

old and dear friend of HIS. (Not bloody likely.)

"My God! Oh, my God!" he gasped. "You're…. You're not real…"

He shut his eyes and dropped the telephone receiver on to the counter.

His hands were shaking.

"Oh, but I am." I said with a playful grin. "You've always know

that I was real. Now, I think that you and I should talk about something,

David." I said simply as I pulled my brand new soundtrack out of the paper

bag the girl had handed me. "What is with this Chilly Down track? I didn't

tell you to write that! What were you thinking?"

His mouth simply hung open. "I… I…" He seemed like he was about to

faint. He then turned towards one of the two men he was with. He whispered

under his breath but I still heard him. "Stephens, call for another car… I

think I'm having another one of those 'flash backs.'"

I laughed at this and walked from the store whistling to the tune of

Dance Magic.

I then did the only thing left to make my day more fun then this already

had been.

I must admit that I was a goblin like mischievous mood at this point.

I placed down my paper bag with the soundtrack safely back inside it

where no one would get to it.

I waited, from an alley near the store until I knew for sure that no

one was looking. That was when I formed a crystal ball in my hand and threw

it at HIS brand new, expensive looking car.

In mid-air the crystal ball turned in to a rotten egg. It hit the

car's windshield. I did this again and again. I had done this a good

eighteen tines. Some hit the side door and the car hood. Others hit the

windshield. For each crystal that turned in to an egg that I threw I had an

excuse to throw it.

I held the crystal ball in my hand. "This one is for-" SPLAT! It hit

the windshield and I quickly held another. "-the 'Chilly down'-" SPLAT! "-

track." SPLAT "What the-" SPLAT! "-Hell-" SPLAT "-were you-" SPLAT!

"-thinking?!?"

I held another. "And this if for the majority of the tracks on the

album 'Tonight' SPLAT!

"And this is for the seventies." SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT!

"And this if for that whole 'Ziggy Stardust' thing." SPLAT! SPLAT!

SPLAT!

"And this.. well, this is just for just being you." SPLAT! SPLAT!

SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT! K-SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT!

SPLAT! K-SPLAT!

Why was I doing this? Why did I do this, one might ask. Well,

the answer is quite simple really. I did it because I wanted to, because I

liked to. And I did it because I can. I simply did it because I could do

it. It was in my nature to make mischief. I was and am after all Jareth,

The Goblin King. And this was fun, even if it was a bit low brow.

I was now done and by the grace of fate I had not been seen doing

it. I was as contented as a starved man having just eaten a four-course

meal. .

I wiped my hands and cleared my throat as I walked away. That was

a fairly nice way to let out my pent up aggressions. I was feeling much

better now.

.

I had been tempted to take the form of the owl and do what birds to

best on automobiles but even I would never ever to that in public,

inconspicuous form or no. I was simply far too dignified for that. So I

simply continued to throw the crystal balls that turned in to rotted eggs

until I was thoroughly satisfied with the mess that I had created for HIM.

I then used my powers to transport myself and my prize (the

Labyrinth soundtrack) back with me to the castle at the center of my

Labyrinth.

I took my place on my throne and laughed a long and hearty laugh. My

goblins seemed pleased that I was happy. They were happy that I was happy.

Yes, sometimes life can be good.

Sincerely,

Jareth

To:

Subject: Fwd: JARETH 5-1

From:

Date: Thu, 21 Oct 1999 19:03:37 EDT

--------

Hello again Everyone,

I hope you all are enjoying these.

Yes, I have another one.

I think that you all just might enjoy this one though it is a trifle

bit longer then most of the others. Here is another entrée from the journal

of The Goblin King.

As I said, I sort of "borrowed" this from the journal of a close….

Friend if he doesn't murder me of course.

Raven

Side not: Do to the content of this Entry I feel I must say now

that I do not think all people who live in the mountains of upstate New York

are stupid. I find most people there quite friendly and I spend a great deal

of time there when I possibly can. Jareth's thoughts are not my own so

please don't be offended if he has stereotypical ideas. As a matter of fact

I spent a good deal of this last summer there and enjoyed it very much as

well as the KIND, GOOD HEARTED, USUALLY WELCOMING people there. It's not my

fault that the people Jareth met were real pips if you know what I mean.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Entrée 76540-3: (The tricks of the trade)

It had all began on this, a rather typical sunny, early morning

right here in The Underground. It was a pretty nice, early autumn warm day.

You could smell the gradual change of the seasons in the air. It was the day

of the autumn equinox here in The Underground and so now the summer season

was finally at an end and the crisp autumn season was at it's dawning. For

once in a long while my goblins were not being as much of a bother as they

usually are. Strange, I thought, that for once they were not smashing

anything about that was fragile or of extreme value to me. So far that day

they had not yet destroyed anything I held of sentimental or of financial

value within my castle. I suppose that meant that my day had started off on a

fairly positive starting point. Of course really did not need any of it,

anyway. It really meant nothing to me when I actually got about to thinking

about it.

It had been a fairly, bland, and over all out right dull,

typical morning here in the underground when the whole little mess began. I

had not expected to receive any visitors that day. I hardly ever anticipated

upon anything ever really anymore.

I was out right bored. I sat idly in my throne room. I was so

very bored that I thought that soon, surely that I may go out of my skull.

.I had begun to live in a very dull, repetition. I hate repetition,

schedules or conformity. It was so very boring. It is just the same old

repeating song of my life I suppose. Only the boring grow bored. ...I would

have thought of something to change this but I simply did not know how.

I had been sitting casually in my throne room in my usual

position as the king of my realm. My left leg was draped over the arm of the

chair. My right leg was bent and my foot rested with the rest of me on the

large seat cushion as I leaned back on my side. I tapped with my right hand

a small rhythm with my gentleman's walking stick with the round diamond

handle against the bamboo, in-curved arm of the throne. Had not I done this

very same thing just the other day? …All of that day?

I began to rub my sinuses just above my nose with my left

hand's index and middle fingers as my right hand made a small, rhythmic

little tune by tapping the walking stick against the arm of the throne.

The drab and intolerably dingy, yellowish brown walls of the room

were stained in every form of filth imaginable. I believe that these walls

might have been white at one time or another. How so very disgusting. It

smelled like a filthy, unkempt pony stable in here. Why did my minions

always insist upon brining random barnyard animals in to the castle? Dear

God, was that chicken dung in the corner there? I was more then a little

apprehensive to checking. It sure smelled like fresh dung. I would have to

have the goblins attempt to clean that up for themselves later. Even with my

magical powers I did not wish to touch that filth. Janitorial or custodial

labor was not a dignified job for a king of any social or political status,

of course a man of any station, born of low class or high, NO ONE should have

to deal with... well, THIS at all.

I was so very unhappy.

I shut my eyes and breathed through my mouth to try and deny the

barnyard like, flatulent, rancid, reeking, stench of my own throne room.

With my eyes shut I tried to take in a moment's release. I

fancied for a moment, using my favourite personal fantasy, that I was a

fairly typical mortal man standing on Earth. I imagined that I was in an

American New York City Greenwich Village studio apartment. I was, in this

vision, surrounded not by moronic goblins but by colourful, opened jars,

bottles and cans of fresh paints, fine tipped pens, coloured markers and

other various art supplies. For a moment I merely pretended that I was not

the frustrated master of an alternate reality that was domed to ruin but

simply a human artist who had dreamed up this nightmarish Hellhole. And being

that simple, human artist in the modern human world I would soon awaken to

find my latest piece, a painting of this very Labyrinth and my castle in the

center of it on sale at an auction in New York City. Now that is a place

where an eccentric man like myself in mortal form would be actually…

welcomed.

I sighed, loving this fantasy.

Well, I finally decided right then and there to accept the futile,

hopelessness of my own position. My fate had been sealed long before I ever

could have a say in the matter. I would keep my secret desires to myself.

No one must ever know of my own secret yearnings. Not a soul should ever

know that the one who can offer mortals their dreams has dreams of his very

own that must forever remain unfulfilled and unknown by any.

For a long moment I held the image of the New York City apartment in

my head. I held tight to it, refusing to let go of it for the sake of my own

world.

I sighed knowing that this would never really be. Do to circumstances

beyond my control I would be master of that kingdom for all of eternity or

until I find I somehow have an heir and that heir would reach adulthood, then

and only then I would be able to slip off and never return. And I knew what

I would do then if this were accomplished. I had been dreaming of it for

many years. I would hide among mortals on Earth. I would try to forget this

life all together once and for all. Ah, what a sweet and truly glorious

dream that it was too. It was a true, real shame that it would have to

eventually come to an end. Even I cannot make every dream come true. No one

has ever offered me my own dreams and yet I can give so many theirs. ...A

part of the curse that is my existence, I suppose. I wonder what I had done

so wrong in my last life that I am in penance like this. Who exactly had I

killed back then?

I very nearly believed that an escape from my own position in my life

was possible but then something brought me back to my own reality. Oh, that

was more then a little unfair. Life had never been very fair to me. Why was

I being forced from my dreams so abruptly? Would I be here forever and ever

and ever? Ah, well, I mused, it's only forever, it's not long at all…

I yawned and then I stretched my arms over my head. I was very bored.

I looked around and took in a deep breath. "I wish something interesting

would happen, right now." I said under my breath as I leaned on my side,

placing down the small walking stick and putting my left hand under to

support my chin as my elbow rested on the arm of the throne.

A voice called out from no where. "You should be careful what you

wish for, Your Highness. You just might get it."

I recognized his voice before I saw him. I rolled my eyes. "Oh,

no. Not you again!"

"Oh, yes." In a small swirling cloud of what mist he appeared. It

was the king of the fairies, Oberon's favourite little lackey, Puck,

otherwise known as Robin Goodfellow. His long white hair hung over his

shoulders. He stood about four feet five inches high. His ears were

pointed. He had a mischievous grin on his eternally childish face. He had

the strange look of a young, perhaps even pubescent school boy having just

run off from his daily lessons to meet; cavort with his play fellows and have

himself a jolly good old time. He dressed in simple black pants and a

draping blue smock that went down to his knees, it was held in place at his

waist with a small black cord of a belt.

William Shakespeare had written about this little imp in his play "A

Midsummer Night's Dream."

I grinned at him politely. Secretly I was apprehensive about his

appearance here in my throne room. "Hello again, Puck."

He made a dramatic bow to such an extent that he nearly toppled

over. And then he stood up right or rather levitated up right. He hung in

the air as if someone had placed him on hooks and hung him, dangling in my

throne room on invisible little wires that I longed to snap. I would love to

have seen him fall on his face just then. I was in the mood for a good laugh.

"Hello, Jareth." He said as he looked around the room. "My, you are

in a rut, aren't you?"

I was growing impatient. I knew that he was up to something. He

always was.

"What do you want, Puck?" I said abruptly. I was trying to get

him to get to the point as quickly as possible.

He frowned. He then gracefully made his way to the ground after

levitating for a short while, suspended in the air and now stepped over to

me. "Why, Jareth, I'm hurt. Do I need to want something to pay a visit to an

old friend?" He said this in that nasally, near gender-less, child like

voice of his.

I gave him a glance to give him the know that I knew him better then

that and that I most definitely knew that he was up to something and somehow

I knew I was not going to like this.

"And besides," he said "It's not about what I want this time. This

time around it's about what you want."

I could remember the last time that little imp had appeared in my

kingdom. I forget right now what he had wanted but he had wanted something

from me and was so stubborn about it when I had refused him.

"You wanted, said and I quote 'I wish something interesting

would happen, right now.'"

"But I did not mean for your idea of interesting. Your idea of

interesting can be anything from a bowl of vegetable soup boiling in a pot to

an historic war in the mortal realm. You are too unpredictable." At this

point I had stood up and was standing a few feet away in front of him.

He hovered in the air again. He floated a foot and a half off the

ground to meet my gaze at eye level. He smiled and folded his arms over his

chest to mock me. "What's said is said."

"But I didn't mean it."

"Oh, you didn't?"

I suddenly realized what he was doing and that he was mocking my

tones, accent and mannerisms. It had taken me a moment to see it, really.

"Now, stop that!"

"Sorry, J." He then stood on the ground and began to pace my floor as

if he had total free run of the place. "If you don't mind I sort of

eavesdropped on your little fantasy. YOU want to live in the mortal world?"

"I do so hate it when people read my thoughts without my permission,

Puck. It's rude. But yes, I would like that but I can't…"

He raised an eyebrow and then laughed as if it was the funniest

thing I had ever said in front of him. For a moment I felt very stupid and

wounded.

"And what's so funny?" I asked as I folded my arms across my

chest. At this point he had levitated to the ceiling and was now sitting

precariously on a wooden rafter. I was tempted to make the rafter crack and

cause him to fall to the ground but I knew that he would probably float off

before anything could happen.

"You!" He said. "You can't even remember what it's like to be a

human. I don't think you'd like it very much. You wouldn't last. I bet you

can't survive half a week AS a mortal."

"I bet you I would."

He leapt down and now stood in front of me again. "Bet? Did you

just say bit? You're on."

"What?" I was a little confused. I did not mean to really invoke

one of HIS challenges. The little imp was far too much like me for his own

good. I wanted to kill him. Usually what one hates in others is what he

truly hates about himself and I was no exception to this.

"I bet you can't spend three days on Earth without your powers or

asking me for help." He said.

"I bet you that I could."

"Fine, if I win you owe me one of your crystal balls to do with as

I'd like. If you win I will be your servant for one day."

That did not seem too difficult. It was not as if it was so very

hard for me to give him a crystal ball.

"Fine."

"Then we have a deal?"

"Yes."

We shook hands and then I realized my mistake. I caught the error I

had made a moment too late, after it had happened. He deliberately was not

allowing me time to prepare for this challenge. One should never shake hands

with an elf unless you are willing to get in to his or her challenge right

away. The same rule applies with imps, fairies and other such beings.

To:

Subject: Fwd: JARETH 5-2

From:

Date: Thu, 21 Oct 1999 19:03:54 EDT

--------

I felt a sickening weakness in my knees and arms. An electric

like force seemed to seep from me like blood being pulled out of a snakebite.

I shut my eyes and gasped. He would not let go of my hand and I

was too shocked by the sensation to try to let go.

When I opened my eyes again I heard birds chirping. I was near a

dirt country road and on either side of me I was surrounded by trees and over

grown farm fields on each side of the dirt road.

Puck stood beside me. My stomach felt like a torn piece of mettle

and I felt very heavy. I checked myself. I looked the same. My clothing,

my black cloak and red velvet shirt, black leggings and boots remained the

same. I was on Earth and it was autumn and that was about all that I could

tell to be the truth of the situation. All the leaves and foliage around me

were red, orange, and gold. The sun was just setting here.

Puck was vanishing. As he did I heard his voice echo. "You have

three days. If you can survive the three days without asking me for help you

win. If you need me just call but then that would make me the winner."

He then laughed as his voice faded off in to oblivion.

"You damned brat, trickster! I don't even know where I am!"

'Such a pity.' I supposed I deserved this. I was not about ready to

let him win though. I had to find out where I was and somehow get some money

and just keep myself alive for three days. That was not going to be so bad,

I thought.

I began to walk down the dirt road. I walked for what felt like

several kilometers without seeing a car pass or another human being for that

matter. I was not even sure what country I was in. I began to suspect that

Puck had either deliberately left me in the middle of no where or in a world

somehow with no real life but with a similar environment as Earth as a cruel

joke.

Finally after hours of walking I felt as if my legs would give out

under me. My toes were sore. I felt a blister already forming on my left

foot. I think I might have been limping from this forming sore.

My feet were dragging on the ground. I had never felt so weak in all

my life as The Goblin king.

An old abandoned barn house stood in an over grown field to my

right. I think that since I had no money I might have to spend the night

there. My legs felt very heavy. Had it been my powers that gave me my

natural grace and poise in movements?

I stumbled twice. Already I was growing frustrated, hating the

mortal condition immensely. I wished that I could transform in to my owl

form as the darkens set in so that I might see better but I could not shape

shift.

I found that the door to the old run down barn was hanging off

it's hinges. I slipped in side. Cobwebs covered everything. A rat scurried

by my feet. This was disgusting. I was going to stay HERE? I was ready to

vomit. I found a fairly empty corner of the large one roomed shack of a barn

and tore off my coke.

I balled my cloak in to a pillow and curled up on the ground and then

in the incredibly dark night, darker then any night ever had been in The

Underground I fell asleep. My body, as it had never been, was totally

exhausted.

When I awoke it was still dark out. I knew though that it was early

morning because a dim light in the gray sky allowed me to see my surroundings

more clearly.

I woke up because a natural need to relieve myself had caught me off

guard. It was cold. My neck and my back ached. I stepped from the barn,

rubbing my hands together to try and warm myself. The sun had not yet risen.

It was so cold that I could see my own breath as being a hot steam.

Everything outside of the barn was damp, covered in an early morning dew.

I left my cloak in the barn. It was too conspicuous and filthy

from sitting in the dirt anyway.

I relieved myself in the open field, carefully as I could. I only

had one set of clothing with me after all.

Once that dirty little business was completed I felt around my neck.

I was still wearing my old cicle pendent. I was hungry and I had no money.

I had to find people and I had to get money. I would sell my pendent and

then steal it back once I would get my powers back.

I walked down that dirt road again. Finally I came to a real street.

There was a small sign that gave the name of the little town I was. It was

such a crude little thing that it did not even give the residential

population number. I was in Edinburg. …But Edinburg where? Was I in

Edinburg England? Was I in Edinburg Scotland? Was I in Edinburg, Ontario

Canada? Where in God's name was I?

A group of stores stood along the street. I had reached a quaint,

condensed village; a small town of old fashioned stores in the serene country

setting. It was only a few blocks of very old buildings. It seemed to be a

typical, wholesome little town. I took my pendent off quickly and held it

tight in my left hand. There were people around, a few.

The sun had just risen and the air was beginning to warm. Now, I

had to find a jewelry store. I noted, checked and saw that traffic moved

forward to my right. I was on the continent of North America from what I

could tell by this and the buildings were the style of old nineteenth century

America, like the village of an old American western it would seem.

It was a small town and threes were everywhere. I was in a simple,

humble, picturesque, isolated little burg.

I looked in the window of a store simply called "The five and ten."

Post cards wee on display on a little wooden wrack in the window for five for

a dollar. One was marked with bold red letters "Greetings from Upstate New

York. " So that's where I was, then? I was obviously far out of the city.

I must have been in the mountains some place relatively close to the Canadian

border.

My stomach was empty. I was very hungry. I do not think I had ever

been truly in need of food in my life. I felt weak and my mind was a little

clouded. Being mortal was not much fun at all. I had not expected the

simplest things to be so damned difficult. The joints to my fingers and

wrists were aching. One day as a mortal and I had arthritis??? What was

next, bleeding ulcers? My form was only that of a thirty-nine year old.

What the Hell was the matter with me? Oh, well I had to ignore those little

aches and pains for now. They were merely an annoying distraction.

I needed to find a store of some kind where I might be able to sell

my pendent for some money. I think it was then that I made a vow to myself

to strangle Puck upon getting back to The Underground.

As if someone had heard my desire I watched as across the street a

pudgy, bulky, large built man in a flannel shirt and blue jeans stepped in to

a small corner store. It had a pretty title but it was really a pawn shoppe,

not at all a proper jewelers at all, I thought as I recalled a pawn shoppe I

had seen in a film once.

I waited for the traffic to clear. I did not really with to

accidentally kill myself while I was physically vulnerable. I then crossed

the street to the jewelers. A small bell sounded as I entered the dimly lit

store. The store smelled of must and saw dust, like a common rummage sale or

thrift shoppe.

The man in the flannel shirt now stood behind the counter.

I stepped over to the counter.

"Yes, my I help you?" He asked. He spoke in a rather heavy, highland

(mountain)/ American accent as he stared at me blankly as if I were the

oddest creature that he had ever seen.

"Excuse me. I was wondering if this was the sort of place

where I might be able to.. be able to sell a.. a piece of jewelry." I was

beginning to feel very awkward.

"Yes." He said simply. He stared at me strangely as if I were

some sort of alien life form.

I did not think my appearance was all that unique.

"Good. I was wondering if you would be interested in this." I

put the pendent down on the counter.

He began to examine it and weigh it in his hands.

"Uh, where exactly did you get this thing?"

"I beg your pardon?"

Was there something wrong with it? What did he mean by asking me

that?

He knew it was real. I knew it was real. It was pure gold.

The cicle was made of gold. The coin in the center of it was silver.

"How do I know it ain't stolen?"

"It's not. Trust me, it's not. It is a one of a kind. There

is not one like it in existence. I can assure you that it IS indeed mine."

"You ain't from around these 'er parts, are ya, Mister?"

"Pardon?" It was hard for me to make out what he had said over

his heavy accent. Then I caught it and siphoned the words in my mind so that

I understood.

"No, I'm not."

"Where ya from, Boston or somethin'?"

I knew he heard my accent. "Uhh… no." I had to think of

something fast. It did sound like a British accent. "UK."

He blinked "Yeah, course I'm ok. I'm just fine."

I smacked myself in the face to clear my thoughts and see to it

that blatant stupidity was not contagious. "No, I'm from Britain."

"Britain?" He seemed very confused. This man was thicker then

one of my goblins.

"England. You know Eeeennn-gga-llaannd? It's another country… in

Europe." I spoke in a very patronizing tone, a bit condescending to him but

I could not help but have to talk down to this mentally incompetent pig.

"You have heard of it?"

"Oh." The idea seemed to suddenly hit him.

I was extremely tempted to say 'Place past the big ocean thingy-

big water. You know, salty, splash, splash.'

He glared at me coldly. "Europe, huh? Hey, you ain't a commie, are

ya? Cause ifin' ya are-" He seemed angry.

"No, I'm not." I interrupted.

"Well," He said. "'Mr. I's from Europe, I'm Mister Big Shot

European,' I'd have to see some ID ifin' ya want ta sell me this 'ere piece.

You Euros do carry ID on ya, don't ya?" He was becoming intolerably hateful

towards me. I would have taken my business elsewhere but there simply was

not an elsewhere to take my business to.

"I'm sorry." I said. "My car stopped a little bit up the road.

I left my wallet with my wife, who is waiting for me. I had no American

currency with me to pay for the fuel. My name is Jareth." I said.

"Jare- ith?"

I nodded. This ignorant, slack jawed mortal was getting on my

nerves rapidly.

"Well, that right there is damn near the oddest name I has ever

heard. Well, Jareth I can only give you fifty six dollars for this 'ere

piece, and I AM awfully generous seein' how you ain't from around these parts

and you is stuck and all.."

"fifty six dollars?" I knew I was being ripped off but I needed

the money. And I could easily pay this man a visit once I would have my

powers back.

"Yup. Take it or leave it."

Reluctantly I took the cash and the tiny slip of paper with me.

I walked down the street until I came to a grocer. As I walked I

had the constant feeling that someone or some thing was watching me. I felt

like this whole little town was staring at me. I thought I was just being

paranoid. Now that I think about it I know it was probably true.

It was a large market, considering the tiny, suburban neighborhood

that it was standing in. It was called Grand Union. I stepped in to the

cool, overly air-conditioned Grand Union. Everything seemed drenched in a

harsh florescent light but that was the way of lighting for most markets on

Earth today.

I pushed an old, mettle, squeaky shopping trolley and pushed it

down the isle. It's tiny wheels were worn.

I had to be careful. I knew that fifty six dollars was not a lot

of money to work with even for only three days.

I grabbed a bag of potatoes from the produce isle. Since I was

basically for the time being living, as it were, in an abandoned barn I had

to get food that could be kept at room temperature. I grabbed a few jars of

soup produced by The Campbell Company where a can opener was not needed to

heat the soup up. I could build a fire and perhaps heat this in a pot.

There was my supper for tonight. I found a cooking pot for sale down an isle

and I would grab a book of matches at the front counter as I would have my

groceries checked out. I bought a box of chocolate cookies. I bought six

apples. I also bought a carton of orange juice. I grabbed a few paper

plates, napkins, a plastic bowl and a bag of plastic spoons and forks. I

also bought a box of granola cereal and a canister of corn chips. I also

grabbed a bottle of strawberry ginger ale. This was not so hard. I had not

had the chance to fix myself up properly that morning. I had to buy a

hairbrush. I knew I was a mess. I also grabbed a package of breath mints

and a gallon of spring water. I had to make sure that I had enough money to

buy all of this.

The store was almost empty as I walked over to one of the young

lady who was working the register, as it is called.

As she tallied up the total cost of what I had spent she looked at

me.

She had the same accent as the man in the jewelry store and I

suspected that all in this town spoke with relatively the same accent, tone

and held the same mannerisms.

"You ain't from around these parts, are ya?" She asked.

"Excuse me?"

She had sounded so much like the man that I needed to make sure

I had heard her right. I was also having trouble hearing her broken English

words through her accent.

"You're not from around here."

"Brilliant deduction." I said sarcastically, still a little

bit angry about the treatment I had received at the quote; unquote: jewelers.

This was a pretty girl but also pretty stupid. She had brown curly hair

that she wore high in a ponytail. Her face was freckled and her eyes were

green.

I noticed that the name on the little tag on her shirt said

that she was Linda.

She gave me a cold look.

I tired to seem more polite. I did not need anyone being

offended with me while I was in a vulnerable condition. This was growing

more difficult then I had thought it would be.

"Umm.. no, I am not from around here. I'm just passing through.

I won't be here for very long though. I will only be around just a few more

days at best."

"Oh. And where are you from, Boston?"

"No. I am from…" If I said UK the little half-wit might

confuse it with 'You 'K'?' And I most certainly was not going to tell this

little fool the truth that I was actually the master of an alternate reality

of fantastical proportions known as The Underground. "…England."

"Oh, that's interesting. You know Elton John's from about there, I

think. Do you know him?"

"Dear, just because I am from there does not mean that I know Elton

John. Do you know Garth Brooks just because you are an American?"

"God no. But I know OF him."

"Well, see how preposterous your little question was?"

"But that's… that's different…"

I raised an eye brow. "How so?"

".. Well, I thought.. well, since it's such a small country and all…"

"Dear, I think that you should stop now before you shove your WHOLE foot

in to your mouth."

She gave me a cold look.

I had handed her the money and took the four, full, rather heavy

brown paper bags and my small amount change that I placed in to one of the

bags to make carrying easier.

I began the long walk with my burden of the groceries back to the

little barn. I had made up my mind that I would spend the remainder of my

time in that condition where I would be comfortably alone, at least. The bags

were heavy and my arms felt as if they were tearing from their sockets.

I would get my revenge on Puck somehow.

As I walked along, cutting through a field to get back to the dirt road

I found myself losing my footing. I tripped. There was a small ditch in the

ground and I had stumbled in it. One second I had been walking the next I

hit the hard, cold ground with a smack. I fell on my face. The groceries

tumbled out of the bags that lay around me. Food was now scattered around me.

To:

Subject: Fwd: JARETH 5-3

From:

Date: Thu, 21 Oct 1999 19:04:07 EDT

--------

Entrée 76540-3: (The tricks of the trade) (part 2)

Now, where was I? Oh, yes…

A young man came running up to me from seemingly no where. I sat

dazed for a moment. I felt something warm and wet on my face. It was

dripping from my sore nose. Was it snot? Was my nose running like a

repulsive little goblin? I reached my gloved hand to my nostrils. I pulled

my hand away quickly, as I tasted a salty substance trickling to my mouth

from within. I was bleeding. I was ACTUALLY bleeding! It was strangely

fascinating, to actually bleed fi I could just look at it from a detached

perspective. I must admit that I was shaken. I felt my heart pounding in my

chest. I thought for a moment that I was dying then I heard my own mind say

'Jareth, get a hold of yourself. You fell. It is just a little blood. You

will be fine.'

I heard someone running towards me but I did not look up. I was too

interested at my own bodily damage. My ankle was aching. Had I twisted it?

The man who had come running was a young boy, about, twenty-three, I

guessed. He was dressed a lot like the man in the jewelry store. He was

thin though and had red hair and had these delicate, somewhat feminine eyes

and cat like features. I can not say that he was not good looking for that

would be a lie. He was quite an attractive young man.

"Sir, are you all right?" He did not have that thick mountain,

American accent. It was indeed an American accent or Canadian. I could not

really tell the difference, not with those faulted, mortal ears.

He helped me to my feet. I tried to stand but found my ankle

was hurting too much. I fumbled and limped as I bent. He was looking around

helping me to gather up all the things that I had dropped. A few apples lay

here. The box of cookies was over there. The carton of orange juice was

dented. "Thank you." I said simply. "That was a little clumsy of me. I… I

didn't see the hole there."

"Hey," He said. "You're a Brit. I always wanted to go to London.

You're just passing through, I suppose." He said matter of faculty with a

boyish smile.

I nodded. Finally I was near a person with a little common sense. I

know that my nose was still bleeding. I felt the blood trickling down. I

did not wish to touch it just now though.

"My name's Jack." He said as he held out his hand. I shook it. "I'm

Jareth Th…" I had to catch myself. Why was this becoming so difficult? "

...er… just Jareth."

He nodded. "Why don't you come inside, I can get you all cleaned up."

He was perhaps the most welcoming of all the people I had seen so far.

He pointed over to a somewhat average sized, white country house on the

other side of the field. Obviously I was on his property.

With his help I limped up his porch and in to his kitchen just

beyond a screened door. I sat down at the table while he wet a white cloth.

He handed it to me and I placed it to my nose.

The blood was beginning to clot. Still a little bit more fresh blood

stained the white cloth. My groceries sat in a larger bag he had handed to

me, to make carrying them easier by my feet.

"So, where you stayin'?" He asked.

"Oh, just outside of town."

I removed the cloth from my face. I was not bleeding anymore. That

was a good thing.

"Do ya need a lift somewhere? I'd be happy to oblige you, if you

need it." He said.

I shook my head. "No. I can walk it."

"No offense Jerry but you do kinda stick out in a crowd. You're a

peculiar fella."

"I know."

"And you twisted up your ankle pretty good."

"I know, I know." I frowned. "But It's not too bad."

"Well, it just seems you should take me up on my offer and take the free

ride back to where ever it is you're stayin'."

"No thank you." I said. I then stood up and still limping I picked up

my groceries. I could not believe it. Human one day and I was, aching,

bleeding probably brewing the flue, and with a twisted ankle and empty

stomach.

Then Jack got a thought. "You.. uh... you do have a place ta stay,

don't ya?"

I narrowed my eyes and tried to look deeply insulted and a small part

of me was.

"Of course I do."

"Well, if you didn't I could offer you my guest room I have

upstairs. I'm in current need of a farm hand. I'd be able to pay ya fifty

dollars a week and offer room and board."

"Thank you but no." I was not about ready to do menial labor for

anyone. "I won't be staying for that long, anyway. As I said… I'm just

passing through."

"Ok, suit yourself."

"Thank you." I said again as I left his house and headed back to

the old run down barn down the street. I moved a bit slower the before and

in a little pain.

As I made it to the edge of his property dizziness came. I had no

idea where it had come from but I felt myself giving out. My knees gave out

under me and I knew that I was collapsing.

I fainted…

When I woke up it was dark out. I was in doors and lying on a sofa.

Jack was standing beside me.

I tried to sit up but I feared that the dizziness would return.

"What… what happened?" I asked.

"Well, it looks like you fainted outside. I was going to call the

police but then I remembered something."

"And that is?"

"The people around here don't take kindly to people who are

different. No offense, man, but you are definitely 'different.'." He then

handed me a cup containing hot tear. "Here, drink this."

I did not know if he was handing it to me under the stereotype notion

that all Brits liked tea or simply because I looked like I needed it.

I took it and sipped it. I then placed it down on the small coffee

table in front of me.

"Just out of curiosity.. I don't mean to pry, man, but you look

sick.. Are ya sick? Do you need a doctor?"

"No. I think I just need a little rest. I've been under a lot of

stress."

"Yeah, but you did fall pretty hard out there. There may be

something seriously wrong with you… internal bleedin' or somethin' like that."

"No…" I shook my head. "I'm fine."

"You sure, mister?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Well, if you don't mind me askin', just how long will you be stayin'

round here?"

"Only two more days… then my.. my-." I was having trouble thinking

of the word for my excuse. "-visa expires."

"I see." He nodded. "Jerry, I think you should spend the night

here."

"It's Jareth. Please, I would prefer it if you would just call me

Jareth. "

"I'm sorry, Jareth. It's just that I don't need you passin' out a

quarter mile up the road. That's all. Just spend the resta the night here,

that's all I'm sayin'. "

I was too tired to make it all the way back with those groceries

back to the old barn that night anyway. I nodded. "Thank you."

"And these woods up here are dangerous at night. They released

some wild wolves back here in the mountains so that they can repopulate

naturally, they're endangered, ya know. And there are cyotes too."

I nodded and lay back down. I think he might have been right. I

think that spending that fist night in that old barn was a mistake. It had

been a cold night. And then I had done all that walking that day and then

falling.. And I had not yet eaten. I know I was starving.. Maybe I really

was ill.

I shut my eyes before he left the room an fell asleep curled up on

his sofa, not caring that he could perhaps have been a lunatic and could have

killed me in the night. I was simply too exhausted to care.

When I woke up the next morning I knew that he was awake a head of

me. My ankle was no longer all that sore.

I heard the sizzling and I could smell bacon frying. "Good

morning." He said when he saw that I was awake.

"Good morning." I said.

I had to relieve my self. I slipped off to his first floor

toilet and went about my business, a little disgusted by it. I looked in the

mirror and was horror struck by how I looked. For one thing I needed to

shave. And my hair was a mess. I borrowed from his medicine cabinets behind

the mirror what I needed to fix myself up properly. While shaving I was

careful not to nick myself. I had lost enough blood for this little adventure

as it was.

I then spent about thirty minutes working to get my hair just right

after washing my face thoroughly. It had never been such a bother before.

But then again before I had not so many physical tasks to attend to.

I emerged looking fairly much like my usual self.

Jack smiled at me with what might have been physical arousal.

"My, when you spiffy yourself up you are a handsome devil, aren't ya, Jerry?"

I smiled. "Why thank you." I was feeling much better, a bit

more like my usual self, or as much like myself as I could in that wretched

powerless condition.

"I thought you might be hungry. I made you some breakfast."

I sat down at his kitchen table. "Oh, I am absolutely famished."

He served bacon, scrambled eggs, rye toast, friend potatoes and

fresh coffee. I did not care much for the coffee but all else was very good.

After I ate I placed my greasy plate in to his sink. I did not

wish to over stay my welcome.

"Well, I must be off." I said.

He sighed deeply. He seemed depressed.

I had my hand on the door handle. I turned to look at him. "What?

What is it?"

"Gosh, well, I don't know. I was just kinda hoping that you and I

could maybe do somethin'. I mean you do have to return back to your country

soon and all... I don't usually get much company up here..."

That's when I realized it. The poor boy was lonely, desperately

lonely. He had trusted me, the oddest of strangers in the hope of making of

me a close companion.

I let go of the door handle and sat down at one of the wooden chairs at

the table.

"Well, I suppose I do still have another full day after this one." I

shrugged. "Why not?"

He smiled. This boy was simple, mentally he was too simple. He was

like an innocent, ten year old boy in the body of a man, probably the result

of generations of cousin to cousin or even brother to sister marriages but

there was something terribly amusing about his sweet, child like naivete.

"What do you think we should do, Jack?" I asked simply as if I were

bored and legitimately interested.

"Well, I don't know. I thought maybe you'd wanna go fishin' or

something but I suppose that's not your cupa tea, is it?"

I shook my head. "No. That seems most dreadfully boring. That's not

my idea of fun at all."

"Well, what do you consider fun, Jerry?"

Now this, this is what I had been waiting for. I had a mischievous

grin on my face I simply could not repress. "Where is the nearest city… the

nearest REAL city?"

To:

Subject: Fwd: JARETH 5-4 (of 4)

From:

Date: Thu, 21 Oct 1999 19:04:23 EDT

--------

It took me about an half-hour to convince him, that and the promise

that I would pay him back all the expenses of our little trip when we would

return. He was so simple minded. I do not think any sane man would have

trusted me.

The five-hour drive in his car was worth it though I did fall asleep

twice. It was four in the afternoon when we reached New York City.

We pulled up in front of a large nightclub known as "The Raven's

Nest".

"You won't regret this." I told him. "I will pay you back for this

before I return home, I promise."

"Oh, don't worry Jerry." He said as he stepped from his old beat

up jalopy of a car "I know you will. A man like you, showin' up dressed as

you are.. well, you've gotta be loaded to be that.. well... that eccentric."

I did not mind him saying that. I knew that my tastes were in fact

rather eccentric.

I do not really much recall what had happened at this point. It was

all a blur to me. I was thoroughly intoxicated within the hour. I know I

had danced, even with sore feet, with several strangers, male and female.

And I had a lot of wine in me and that was all that I had ingested since

breakfast other then the potato crisps I had eaten in the car on the trip to

the city.

It was two in the morning when my head began to throb and my mind

began to focus again. That was when I found myself sitting at a table in the

dimly lit nightclub as loud dance music played.

I tried to keep my eyes focussed. Jack had in him one too many

glasses of white whine and tequila. There was no way that he could drive

home now.

"Jack, give me your wallet." I said as if ordering one of my idiot

goblins.

"Ok."

That had been far too simple. He handed me his brown leather wallet.

He did not have much cash left but the little bastard had a platinum master

card that he probably kept and only used for emergencies. How a simple farm

boy had a platinum credit card was beyond my comprehension.

His head was nodding. His eyes were glazed and he looked at me

strangely. My head was beginning to ache terribly. I was sobering up and

rather ungracefully too I might add.

I stepped over to a pay phone and fumbled through the thick yellow

book that lay next to it though I could not really read the print so well in

my condition. Finally I found the number of The New York City public

taxicab-company and I called for a taxicab to come and pick us up. I was not

about ready to got out side and whistle one of those cars down like some

lost, and dazed drunkard who needed a ride. I was going to do this as

properly and as discretely as possible.

Jack could not drive us to his home now and I had not with me a

drivers license. I was extremely tired and had a lot of fun that night over

all. I would have to borrow his master card and get us in to a hotel for the

night. I could have just taken the boy's credit card and left him there but

I think I pitied the poor fellow and he had helped me when I had needed him.

I owed it to him to bother to care for him now.

I returned to the table. "Come on. We are going to a nice hotel for

the night."

He nodded and staggered. I had to help him to his feet

"I just want to say J.. Jare-ittthh… "

I rolled my eyes in disgust at the lack of ability this man had to

maintain composure while intoxicated.

"I just want to say, Jerry that I love you, man. I really, really love

you. "

"You do not mean that." I said quietly as I helped him out of the

nightclub to wait for the taxicab.

"But I do. I really, really do. You're probably the best friend

I've ever had and I've only known ya a day, man. I do really love ya, man."

He was a disgusting, slob of a wreck. I wondered if he would be so

gracious towards me once the sobering period would take him.

When the yellow car with the sign on top pulled up I helped Jack

inside.

I looked at the driver. The car was filthy and reeked of stale

nicotine and exhaust fumes. "Take us to the Marriott Hotel." I said,

carefully pronouncing every word as so that I would not slur from the alcohol

that had thickened my tongue a bit.

When we arrived at the hotel I registered us in as being brothers

though I did not care much for the idea of being seen as being connected to

that rather stupid, though harmless man by blood. I had to have my

intoxicated little companion sign the paper. I had us in a suite. I do not

think that Jack could afford it but by tomorrow evening I would be able to

pay him back with anything he might desire. I would grant him his dreams if

that is what he wanted. I owed him, as for the rest of his hellish little

town I would have to send goblins after them. I had not had my goblins raid

a simple, country village in centuries. It would be amusing to see modern

Americans react to that. Of course they would probably mistake them for

giant rats or something as loathsome and as idiotic as that.

When we reached the suite I helped him on to the bed and ordered for

myself a bottle of champagne from the room survive. While trapped on Earth I

think I would rather have spent the remainder of my time totally, and

thoroughly intoxicated as opposed to suffering a painful sobering, hang over

period.

After fumbling with the corkscrew I managed to get the champagne

bottle open. I drank. Jack drifted in and out of consciousness on the bed

and I drank.

I can not recall what exactly I might have done or said that night but

when I awoke it was three in the afternoon. My head was throbbing and I knew

that thankfully my time in this monstrous little game was almost up. I was

nauseous. Jack was, fortunately for him, still asleep.

I quietly slipped in to the next room. I doubled over the toilet and

began to vomit. My head was throbbing. I really hated this.

After I knew my stomach was totally empty I had room service bring up two

aspirins. I took this and began to prepare myself a hot bath.

I slipped in to the tub and sat there for about an hour plotting on

just how I was going to pay Puck back for all of this.

Once I was dried and clean I gently shook Jack who still lay

asleep. He opened his eyes. The glare of the sun from the open window

bothered his light sensitive eyes, I could tell.

He looked around the room and at the crystal chandelier that hung

from the ceiling.

"Where are we? Did we die and go to Heaven, Jerry?"

"Don't be such a fool!" I snapped a little too harshly. "We're at

The Marriott Hotel. I had to use your mater card but don't worry about it.

I will pay you back."

"You did WHAT?!?!"

"Don't worry. I will pay you back. You were too drunk to drive last

night and I do not have my license with me."

"You had better pay me back!" He snapped.

"Don't worry. I will. Now just relax, sober up and try to enjoy

yourself."

"I can't. I gotta get back home. There's chores to be done."

"All right. Then let's go." I said.

He put on his shoes that lay at the base of the king-sized bed

where he had slept. He began to tie his shoelaces. "You know Jerry, you are

a peculiar fella, you know that, don't ya?"

"I know."

His beat up old car had two parking violation notices stuck to the

windshield.

"Don't worry." I said simply as he frowned at the yellow slips of

paper. "I will pay for all of this. I promise you that I can."

The more I said this more I think he doubted me.

As we drove back up in to the mountains I stared out the window. After

a painfully long period of silence I spoke. "Jack, do you believe in magick?"

"Magick? You mean all that hocus pocus, gobilty gook?"

"Yes."

"'Course not. I believes in God and I believes in people but not

in all that nonsense about witches and other such whooie."

"What if I were to tell you that magick does exist?" I said.

"I'd tell you that you was crazy, man." He said from behind dark

sunglasses as he kept his eyes on the road.

"Maybe I am." And that was when the oddest and most insane thought

popped in to my head. What if my whole life, everything I had done and

experienced in The Underground was all some kind of dream? What if I was

insane? What if not one moment of it had been really real? Now, if this

were true then who or what exactly was I that I had so much trouble adapting

to the mortal world like this? What if it was all a psychologically induced

delusion? Had I convinced myself that I had not known mortality and so

because I was in the state of believing that it would be difficult for me to

adapt to it having lead the life of a preternatural, immortal goblin king?

An the more I thought about this the more insane everything began to seem to

me.

When we pulled up in front of Jack's house I stepped out of the car.

As he locked the car I felt something. My time was up. A rush of electrical

energy seemed to flow in to me like a cool title wave. I felt light, strong

and I felt like my old self.

I laughed as I felt it all return to me. It just felt so good to have

it all back now.

Just then two police cars pulled up. Jack stood along side me as

the cars puled up.

"What seems to be the trouble officers?" he said as two police

officers stepped forward. One had his hand on his gun holster and was

staring at me coldly.

He quickly pulled out the gun and pointed it towards me. For a moment

I was afraid but then I remembered that the game was over. I had won and my

powers were back.

"Freeze!" He said to me. "You're under arrest!"

"What are the charges?" Said Jack.

"Vagrancy and trespassing for one.. You were seen leaving the old

Miller's barn. You are being charged with the selling and possession of

stolen property. We think ya stole that pendent you sold at Smitty's store."

"You have no proof." I said as I folded my arms over my chest.

"You don't seem to know how things work around this 'er place, do

ya, boy?" He said as he stepped closer to me. "You see I'm the sheriff and

if I says you did it. You did it, ya hear me? You're an outsider to these

parts and you ain't welcomed! We don't like 'your kind' around these parts."

"And what kind am I, Sheriff? Hmm.."

"Well, you're… you're different… you're not like us. You could cause

trouble. We don't like trouble round here. You're a foreigner." He

practically had spat the word. "You don't belong here. And we don't need

none of your trouble."

"Well, I suppose I won't be able to welcome you to where I am from

then. I suppose." I said. I then sighed and smiled at them. "Such a pity."

"What do you mean by that?"

At that very moment I made the front tires of the sheriff's car pop.

His gun and the other man's gun turned to long black cobras that now crawled

up their arms.

The sheriff screamed as he flung the snake off of him.

"Jesus!" Cried Jack as he leapt away from me, afraid that I would

attack him next.

"Well, I must be off." I said. "But first..." My pendent was now

back around my neck and with a slight gesture a crystal ball appeared in my

hand.

I held it out toward Jack who took a step back. "What… what is it?"

"It's a crystal... nothing more, but if you turn it and look in to

it- it will show you your dreams but this is not a gift that I offer

everybody. It is for all the trouble you went through for me. Do you want

it?"

The sheriff and the other officer had gone running down the street.

Cautiously Jack took the crystal from my hands.

"I promised that I would pay you back." I said

"So you did. So you did." He nodded.

"I am a man of my word, Jack."

"Are you... a man, I mean."

"Yes, I am. I am different from you but I am still a man."

"Jareth, where you from.. really?"

"I come from a world known as The Underground."

"The Underground. " He repeated. He looked as if he were about

to faint.

"Would you rather I pay you back with currency or do you want to

keep the crystal?" I asked.

He was already looking in it and was enthralled by what he was

seeing. "No, no. I'll keep it."

"Good. I must go now, Jack."

"Wait, where you goin'?"

"I have to go back home now." I said. "Good bye, Jack."

"Wait, Jareth, we're still friends, right?"

"Of course we are, Jack but I must go."

He nodded. "All right. Good bye, then."

I disappeared in a swirling mist of glittering dust.

I reappeared in my throne room. Puck was sitting at the window. He

turned and stood up. He walked over to me.

"I must say, Jareth I am amazed that you lasted. But didn't I tell

you that the mortal world is not what it's cracked up to be? I hope you've

learned a lesson that sometimes you should be happy with what you have and

who you are. Sometimes the dream can actually be a nightmare."

I grabbed him by his collar. "Shut up and get to work! You're mine

for the day. I want this room cleaned. I want my boot polished and then the

royal stables cleared up. And after that I want you to dust out the

oubliettes!" I dropped him. "Get to work now!"

I must admit though that once I settled back in to my throne it did

feel god to be home. This was where I belonged. This was who I was. I loved

my powers and authority here too much to give it all up. And maybe Puck was

right, though right now he's scrubbing my walls by hand. Maybe sometimes I

should be happy with who and what I am. I was taking it all for granted.

Sincerely,

Jareth, The Goblin King

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] JARETH 6 part 1 of 2

From:

Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1999 20:03:05 EDT

--------

Hello again Everybody,

I hope you are enjoying these.

Yes, I have another one. …And no I am not insane…. All right, so

maybe I am.

I think that you all just might enjoy this one though it is a trifle

bit longer then most of the others though it is not as long as the fifth one,

which had been longer then I thought it would be once placed down on the

computer. Here is another entrée from the journal of The Goblin King.

As I said, I sort of "borrowed" this from the journal of a close….

Friend if he doesn't murder me of course.

Raven

PS, If Jareth doesn't kill me, I know some of you might.

-----------------------------------------------------

Entrée 2350 C (The substance dreams are made of)

"Down the labyrinthine ways of my own mind" - Francis Thompson, 1913.

I do admit that my world is a strange place but that is simply what

it is meant to be. It is 'Where everything seems possible and nothing is

what it seems.' It is not supposed to be picked and pried apart like a dead

animal in some mortal's biology laboratory.

It began fairly typically this morning in The Underground, Early

evening on Earth…

In the Mortal world John Peterson, a botanist was finishing the final

touches of what was for him a very important research project.

His five-year-old daughter, Clara had run in to the room.

I sat watching this in the form of the owl just outside of the window

of the room. I was perched on the branch of an old oak tree just outside of

John's library.

"Daddy! Daddy!" Clara cried to her father. "Please finish reading

me the story." She held in her tiny hands The Labyrinth book. The binding

was terribly worn and the cover was severely creased but that only showed me

how often that particular book had been read by perhaps another owner before

this little girl.

"Not now, honey." John said at his desk. "I have important things to

do. Daddy needs to finish his work."

"Pretty please, Daddy. You promised. You promised. You left it at the

pretty ball room part." She begged.

He could not resist her pleas. He pulled out the chair and helped her

on to his lap.

Needless to say I had to sit there and wait for what felt like an

eternity as I heard the tale of Sarah's journey through The Labyrinth for the

umpteenth time that week.

I was only waiting there because I knew and I wanted to see an adult

mortal walk through my Labyrinth. John seemed like just the man I wanted. I

just needed to wait. The game would be simple enough. All I had to do was be

a little more patient. What can I say? I was bored that night. I had needed

a little amusement.

He finished the thin novel with the ending words "'No body saw him,

white in the moon light, black against the stars.'"

"That's sad, Daddy. That's a sad, sad story." Said the little girl as

she frowned.

"Why, darling?" He asked.

"Well, he just wanted her to believe in him. It's not fair. I think

he loved her. He just wanted to live outside of her, to be made real... to be

believed in."

"True but she had to get her brother back." He said as he placed

the book down next to his notes. John had not really understood the meaning

of the story. His daughter seemed to have caught it better then he had. I

really do think the five-year-old child understood it better then John did.

Then John shrugged his shoulders. "It isn't real anyway. It's just a story."

"But it's not fair!" The child pouted. She did not seem to catch

the part he had said about it not being real and I was glad of this.

The little girl wandered off with a bitter discontentment.

I could not believe it. A five-year-old pitied me! Oh, this just

simply was too much! How much more humiliation was that little encounter

with the young, yet charming Sarah Williams was going to cost me?

John sighed. He was exhausted. He had been working endlessly

through the nights to get his little research project completed. He had not a

proper night's sleep in weeks. He looked down at all of his notes and at the

final analysis report that lay on the desk that he had just finished typing

out. He laughed bitterly as he picked up the beat up little novel that he

had just read to his little daughter. "I wish the goblins would come and my

work away… right now." He grinned at what he must have thought was the

idiocy of it.

That was it. The goblins had heard it. I had heard it. He had said

what had been needed to be said.

The room went dark as all the lights went out around him. Several of

my goblins scurried about John's feet. One of them grabbed up the notes and

another took away the freshly printed out computer final analysis report.

The lights went back on and they vanished, all of his work and my

goblin minions.

Now that they and the notes were back safely in The Underground I had

to do what I had to do to get the ball rolling so to speak.

In a burst of glittering dust I flew in and transformed myself in to

my usual form in front of John.

John's library was so terribly disorganized. Books and charts, and

half-empty cups of tea lay about the somewhat small room. It was in complete

disarray and my Goblins had not needed to cause the damage. The room was a

chaotic mess. Obviously John was not much of a one for simple house keeping.

John stared at me wide eyed and with his mouth open.

"It's just a story, is it?" I asked sarcastically. "Well, I must

say that theory does put a bit of a damper on my day."

He stepped back, pressing his body against the wall as if the floor

were vanishing from under him. "It's you. You're that... the man in her

story book!"

"Yes. I am Jareth, The Goblin King." I said.

"This is... This is…This is impossible." He stammered.

"You should know, you are a scientist, that nothing is really impossible

but only improbable and this though most certainly is improbable is not

impossible." I said. "I am really here. You asked that your work be taken.

I took it. My goblins took your notes and your final report."

"What… what exactly are you?" He asked.

I laughed. I had never been asked that before by someone who actually

meant 'What the Hell are you made of?'

"What do mean, what am I?"

He seemed to regain some of his usual calm manner. He stepped over

to me and touched the fabric of my cape as if to make sure I was really

there. "Well, you seem to be the physical manifestation of my own

frustration and perhaps even my id. You seem to me the incarnation,

physically of what I wish for, the power and carelessness. You seem to be my

own irresponsibility made manifest so that I must acknowledge and care to my

responsibilities as a man and defeat you as all men must defeat their own

inner darkness as what you represent."

I was laughing heartily. I quickly composed myself. "Are you trying

analyze my reason for existence? Do you really think that I was made real

through YOU? You are an arrogant fool if you believe that. Magical entities

such as myself only can exist if a truly strong will or many hold a faith in

it's power. I cannot be destroyed because I have a strong will of my own

conceived after a strong faith in my being was maintained. I believe in my

own existence- therefor I exist. I have a past, present, and future and I

was physically born though I am eternal in this form. I have a life like any

other creature in this universe. I am a physical being, John- magical yes,

but also physical."

"Amazing." He stared at me. "So all things believed in totally

can be made manifest if it is a shared belief and or a truly strong one?"

"Possibly. Even I am not entirely sure as to how it works but I do know

that a strong belief can make something real or it can destroy it if the

faith is lost. If that thing that is no longer believed in does not have

awareness of it's own to believe in itself and it's own existence."

He looked me over. And again he asked, "What are you?"

"You know, I'm not really sure." I told him simply with a grin.

"Maybe when it's all said and done, it's best not to know but to simply be

though it is always good to ask questions... sometimes you may get answers.

But you have to know the right questions to ask."

"I want to study you." He said boldly. "I want to take hair and

blood samples. You do... uh... have blood, don't you?" He asked.

I laughed. "Yes, I do. I am living though I am eternal. I am an

immortal, and a very powerful one at that."

I was doing my best to try and make him realize that he should have

been more afraid of me then curious. But I think that is the flaw with all

mortals who study science. They are no real fun. They would rather ask why

a storm is rolling in rather then to run away from the on coming lightning.

He was naïve. He should have known and should have been afraid of

the power that I possessed.

He looked over at his desk. "My notes! I need those notes for

tomorrow night. Where have you taken my notes? God, where's my report?!?"

I smiled. This is what I had been waiting for. "You're notes,

they're at my castle with your written report."

I tried to seem bored. And to tell the truth I was growing a little

bit impatient with this whole situation.

I would have offered him a crystal but I did not need for him to

scientifically analyze one of those. That was when I imagined what would

happen if he did somehow prove my existence as well as the existence of The

Underground. If he did that then no being beyond the mortal realm would be

safe. Mortals would panic or get jealous. What men fear or envy they find a

way to destroy usually. I imagined what would happen if somehow a mortal

army raided The Underground. And then very creature in it would be held in

a Laboratory to be studied and then eventually exploited by mortals somehow.

Both worlds, Earth and mine would then be in chaos.

The Underground would be destroyed and on Earth a new age of

darkness would begin and witch hunts and all that other nonsense. I had to

be careful with this one, see to it that he did not record the events of his

journey and make sure that he kept no physical evidence of his journey.

I had to make sure that this remain un-provable but yet still

for him somehow believable. This I thought was the sort of man who believed

in nothing outside of physical proof so I had to be truly careful with this

one. Somehow I had to find a way to keep him believing in what was

happening or else I might lose my power over him.

"I have to have them back. I didn't mean it, really." He said.

"Oh, didn't you?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Please. I need them back."

I made a wide gesture with my arm and then the two of us in a flash of

light now stood on the hill just outside of The Labyrinth.

"You need to hurry and find your way through my Labyrinth to get to

my castle if you want your papers back. You had best hurry. You only have

thirteen hours and my goblins have developed a taste for things made out of

paper. Of course my goblins have a taste for nearly anything. If you can

not reach my castle in thirteen hours I will feed your little research

project to my goblins." I said.

I then faded from sight.

"Wait…" I heard him cry as I disappeared. I was not going to give him

the chance to question where he was or to back down and say that he would

rather not bother for it. I was not playing very fairly, on that I will

confess but then again, when have I ever really played fairly?

From up in the throne room of my castle I watched him from a

crystal ball that showed me his image as he made his way through the twists

and turns of my Labyrinth.

He had found the entrance easily enough. He was running down twists

and turns, choosing random passages and all the while staring at the very

walls with an odd child-like wonder.

I think that I should have warned him that The Labyrinth would not be

the same as it had been for dear Sarah.

The Labyrinth is always changing to suit the consciousness of the

one walking through it. It is like a journey of each individual through his

own mind. That is what makes it really such a challenge. It is always a

personal journey. And like the human mind or even the universe itself my

Labyrinth though always constant was ever changing. The Labyrinth is ever

changing yet ever constant if this can possibly be understood and I knew as I

know still all of it's secrets. Sure, I could have warned John about that

but where was the fun in that?

I watched it all as he made his way through The Labyrinth.

He had come to The dreaded Quacks.

Several large duck like goblins were standing around all at about six

feet tall each. They were fumbling around, grabbing up with their wings

blades of grass and bits of dust into tiny test tubes. Some mumbled tittles,

giving labels to things they did not really understand but pretended that

they did. Some were turning the pages of thick books with their large

wings. They were bottling and labeling anything and everything that they

came across. Born curious creatures yet still quite incompetent creatures

that is the only thing that The Quacks knew how to do. They would deny that

something existed unless they could place it in a bottle, label it and study

it. And even then they would just pretend that they did while they would

never really understand the item that they were studying.

I saw a lovely, ironic little metaphor with mortal doctors and The

Quacks. It seemed fitting to me that John had come across these dreary, bird

brained creatures that could not see beyond their little clear glass bottles

that they placed various things in, basically all things that they could see

and grab.

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] JARETH 6 part 2 of 2

From:

Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1999 20:12:51 EDT

--------

John blinked twice, trying to adapt to the surreal-ness of this

reality. Finally he took a breath and stepped forward.

He could tell that these creatures were somewhat intelligent or so

they seemed to him. Looks can be very deceptive. The Quacks talked amongst

themselves about measurements and new discoveries. One was ecstatic. He had

just discovered a "Rock." And at this the others were oowing and awwing.

John thought that perhaps these strange creatures, The Quacks, knew

how to get through my Labyrinth. He was a fool if he thought that I would

make it that easy for him.

"Excuse me." He cried out. "Excuse me!"

The creatures ignored him. They busied themselves with their work of

bottling and labeling things.

Up in my throne room, surrounded by my loyal yet stupid goblins I laughed

at him.

Finally in frustration John grabbed one by it's wing and screamed in

it's face. "WHY ARE YOU IGNORING ME?!?"

The duck-like creature made a slight noise as if it were startled. "We

ignore anything that's not real. The only way something is real is if we can

label it and place it in a bottle or if you are in one of our textbooks.

You're not labeled or bottled. You most certainly are not spoken of in our

text books therefor YOU do not exist!"

"That's ridiculous." He scoffed. "You can't bottle sun light. Isn't

the sun real?"

That was when John glanced up at the bright sapphire sky just to make

sure that the sun in this reality was at least similar to the sun of Earth

and indeed it was just as the atmosphere is very nearly the same.

"Sun?" Asked one of The Quacks. "We only know what we can label and

bottle but yes the sun exists because the sun is in our textbooks. That's

the only other way we know if something is real besides the bottling and

labeling of things.."

"I need to know how to get through this Labyrinth, surely you must

know." John said.

"We know but we can't tell you." It said.

"Why not?" He seemed to be whining.

"Because we can't really acknowledge that you exist until we label and

bottle you and then write about you in our text books."

. It was with those words that two Quacks emerged from the bushes

with an eight-foot long test tube that they dragged through the dust. They

began to run with the heavy clear glass thing towards John.

"WHAT??? You don't intend to put me in that thing, do you? You're

out of your minds!"

At the sight of that monstrous thing that they dragged closer towards

him that they obviously intended to place him in John began to run.

He ran down a zigzagging path in to the hedge maze. One of the Quacks who

had not been carrying the giant test tube was right behind him, giving chase

.

John quickly ducked behind one of the large bushes. The Quacks ran

by.

"He has to be around here somewhere!" One of them cried.

John gasped as he sat, safe for the moment behind the bush.

A tiny little firefly flew in front of him "Hello." she said

politely.

"Hello?" He was surprised that he was talking with a bug. He could

still hear The Quacks in the distance. He had hopefully lost them.

"Do you know the way to the castle?" He asked. At this point I

think that the poor mortal doubted his own reason.

"I don't know for sure." Said the firefly. "But I can try to

help you, if you'd like."

"Thank you." He said.

The firefly flew on a head and John followed it.

He walked for hours. "Are you sure you know where you are going?" He

asked it finally.

"Not really, but you don't either. So we're even." She said.

I was surprised. The firefly had taken him to a wide canyon on the

opposite side of The Goblin City. He had actually by-passed The Goblin City

completely. On the other side of the canyon was a small clearing and beyond

that stood the back of the outer wall of my castle.

Well, I had nothing to worry about or so I thought. He had made it

that far but there was no way that he was going to get across that canyon.

"This is no ordinary canyon. This is The canyon of Doubt." Said the

firefly.

"Oh? How do we get across?"

The firefly fluttered for a moment. "You would have to take a

dare. It's all a matter of a leap of faith. You have to leap across. This

canyon is what divides dreams from reality. It's sort of the fault line of

The Underground. And to join the two you have to take a leap of faith across

The Canyon of Doubt."

How the Hell did that little firefly know that? No one was supposed

to know about that. It took me a moment but then I realized who the little

firefly truly was and I considered her to be helping John cheat.

John stared at the firefly strangely.

She sighed. "Sometimes you just have to take a leap of faith."

"Are you crazy?" He asked. "I've never done anything like that

before. I'll fall!"

"You have to believe you won't." She said.

He took a deep breath and sighed. He took several steps back and

for a moment. I thought he was going to give up but then he took off running

for the canyon.

I was startled as I watched it. I had never seen a mortal actually

take that great a leap before.

In an instant he was over the canyon, his legs dangling in the

air. And the next second he was on one knee on the opposite side, right in

front of the back wall of the castle.

I could not understand it. What was so important about a few research

papers that he was doing this- that he had dared to take such a leap? I

simply had not known.

Now on the other side of The canyon of Doubt the firefly met up with

him. "Come on." She said. "This way!"

Before they could move a gray, hazy mist rose from the canyon.

It turned in to a dark black cloud. And then this dark cloud took on

the form of a totally black wolf, twice as large as any earthly wolf. It's

fur was black and it's ears were black. Even it's eyes were black. It was

as black as pitch, black as sin, this monster.

It growled and bared it's fangs at John.

He looked at the firefly. "What is that?!?!" He cried.

"That is The Shadow of Doubt. When someone takes a great leap of faith

sometimes The Shadow of Doubt is there to gobble you up."

"Why didn't you warn me about this?" He gulped as he tried to

step back from the beast that watched him with the soulless black eyes of a

predator.

"I thought you might have known. Well, no time now. Run!" She

cried. "This way!"

.

They ran around the castle and the beast gave chase. It had seemed

that they had lost him in my courtyard rose garden.

I waited pacing the floor of the throne room. They were on their way.

If not for the help of that little insect John would not have made it this

far.

After a few minutes I heard it. John's footsteps were rushing; echoed

down the corridor towards my throne room.

The tiny firefly appeared in the room first. I was now sitting on

the ledge of the window. I turned to face them.

John stood in the frame of the doorway trying to catch his breath. I

looked at the firefly for a moment and grinned. "Hello, Morgan."

In a burst of white light the firefly transformed in to the most

beautiful immortal creature that I knew of.

Morgan Le Fay stood before me. ..The great Lady of the lake herself,

the high ruler of Avalon now stood where the firefly had been. Her long

white dress draped to the ground. Her flowing black hair circled around her

face. "Hello, Jareth." She said simply.

I stood up and folded my arms across my chest. "You do realize that

this does break all of the rules."

She shook her head. "I only assisted him. He made all the decisions

and faced your challenges by himself."

"You lead him to the castle!" I said sharply.

"Yes, but he still faced all the obstacles you had set for him."

"Not all of them." I smiled knowing that there was one final

challenge.

John had been gasping and staring at Morgan in her true form for

what seemed like an eternity. Then he finally spoke up. "What do you mean

not all of them? I'm here. I made it to your damned castle! What more do

you want?"

"Yes." I said. "You did make it. And here are your papers." I

made a gesture and all the notes and his final report lay at his feet in a

neat little folder. "Now, you just have to find your way out of here." I

said with a slight chuckle.

"What do you mean? How am I supposed to get out of here?" He looked

at Morgan as if she could help him.

"You need to have the faith of a child." I said as I made a crystal

appear and held it out to him in my hand.

He stepped over and gazed in to the crystal. He had picked up the

folder and held it tight in his hands.

The image he and I both saw in the crystal orb was of his daughter,

Clara. She was rubbing her eyes and clutching a tiny doll in her arms. She

was standing in her little nightdress in the middle of his study; his private

little library. That is usually where she would find her father at night if

she had need of him. She looked around with her tiny, worried eyes and

called out.

"Daddy.. Daddy, I had a bad dream… Daddy!"

John looked up at me after gazing in to the crystal. "What am I

supposed to do?"

"Simple." I said. "Nothing is real unless it is believed in. You have

slipped in to my realm. And you don't always believe in yourself. There was

that Shadow of Doubt when you took your leap of faith and now it has chased

you here. The only way you can escape it is to have the faith of a child.

You don't always believe in yourself but you do believe in your daughter and

so that means-"

"She has to believe in me?" He half asked and half said, unsure of

himself as he interrupted me in mid-sentence..

"Correct." I replied.

Something snarled in the distance. It had caught John's scent. It was

The Shadow of Doubt that had come after him again.

.

I grinned. "You had best hurry. The Shadow of Doubt has caught your

scent and will devour your soul if you cannot call out to her. She has to

believe in you." I said. I had never seen anyone go through so much bother

for a few documents. I honestly did not see the value of it just then.

He called out towards the tiny crystal orb in desperation. "Clara!"

On Earth Clara looked around the room in confusion. She had heard his

voice echoing off the walls. "Yes, Daddy?"

He sighed, grateful that she could hear him. "Clara, darling you

must do something for me."

She heard his voice echoing from seemingly nowhere again.

The Shadow of Doubt, the beastly, hungry black wolf was scratching

and banging itself against the doubled doors of my throne room that had

slammed shut behind John after he had walked out of the door frame. No

goblins were about. They, as stupid as they were, feared The Shadow of Doubt

and feared that one day it could devour the whole kingdom. I would never

allow that to happen.

"Sure Daddy." Clara said simply.

John looked at the doors. He heard the hungry beast almost as well as I

did.

"You had best hurry this up." I said simply.

Morgan stood back knowing that she could not interfere with this.

"Clara," John said "you have to believe in me! You have to! You

have got to believe in me!"

"Of course I do, Daddy." She said innocently.

"Clara, you have to say it. You have to say that you believe in

me!" He cried desperately.

Clara looked around the room. Hearing the echoing, desperate voice

of her father was making her nervous. Her tiny hands trembled as she held

her doll closer to her.

It was just then that the doors to my throne room swung open. The

beast entered the room, it's nostrils flares as it snarled. It glared at

John and over looked all else. John's mouth hung open. He was too afraid

to scream. His eyes were wide.

The Shadow of Doubt growled. It did not seem to see Morgan or

myself. It ignored all else but John. John was it's prey.

He gave a fierce growl and then it lunged for his throat. As it leapt

in the air at John, John gave a shriek of terror.

On Earth at that very second that Clara stammered. "I… I believe in

you, Daddy. I do believe in you. I always have. I believe in you, Daddy."

It seemed to me that Clara was telling her father what she had thought Sarah

should have said to me.

The Shadow of Doubt vanished in mid-pounce.

John fell over, still holding his folder. The Shadow of Doubt was

gone.

I laughed slightly as I threw the crystal orb in to the air.

In a slit moment John was home. Morgan and I watched, as invisible

specters in the shadows as John, back on Earth now embraced his daughter who

seemed very confused.

"Daddy, what happened?" She asked as he wept, holding her close to

him.

John had learned a valuable lesson on his little journey through The

Labyrinth that he would pass on to Clara and from her to her child. I had

ensured it for at least three generations.

Morgan and I transported ourselves to a private room in my castle.

At a small table we sat together and talked. "I do not understand you,

Morgan." I said. "You have never interfered with any one of my games

before. What made this one so important?"

"You never actually had looked at those notes of his, did you,

Jareth?" She asked.

I shook my head. "You had brought him to the castle so quickly and

I had been watching you. I hadn't the time."

"In those files,' she said "were notes that would go in to

research to help try to find a cure for the AIDS virus, that plague on Earth."

I knew that a lot of good and innocent people had died from that

dreadful disease. It was a monstrous thing and I was glad that John had won.

I smiled. "Well, all is well that ends well, I suppose. He has his

papers, Earth has it's chance and so does a new generation to believe in our

world." I wanted to laugh as a smile crossed my face "…without A Shadow of

Doubt."

"Why had you bothered with this one, Jareth?" Morgan asked me

suddenly.

"I wanted to teach him a lesson that he could keep and share with

others. I really won with this one, Morgan. If he had failed my intent would

have been lost. To tell the truth I am glad he won."

"As am I." She said as she vanished to return back to her kingdom

of fair folk.

I sat down on my throne. If a man like that could take a leap of

faith to such an extent and destroy The Shadow of Doubt with the faith of a

child perhaps that had ensured the existence of my realm long in to the next

millennium.

Well, I must admit that this over all had been a most amusing and

interesting day and I think John finally understands and HAS analyzed it

finally. He knows the substance that dreams are made of. If they can be

made real then they are conceived of pure and simple mortal faith, the

seemingly most important thing in the universe, human faith.

Sincerely,

Jareth, The Goblin King

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] JARETH 7 (Part 1 of 6)

From:

Date: Wed, 10 Nov 1999 21:29:04 EST

--------

Hello again everyone,

I hope you are enjoying these. I think you might like this one.

Yes, I have another one. …And no I am not insane…. All right, so

maybe I am.

I think that you all just might enjoy this one though it is a trifle

bit longer then most of the others. Here is another entrée from the journal

of The Goblin King.

I had hoped to have this one finished and out for The Labyrinth fan

fiction e-mailing list before Halloween but unfortunately I was far too busy

to bother with posting this just then. This one I think is not so good so if

you think that it is disappointing at first glance do not bother to read the

rest. I had hoped that the plot of Jareth's little adventure in this one

would be more interesting but it was not. I will hopefully have a better one

out before December.

As I keep saying I sort of "borrowed" this from the journal of a

close…. Friend if he doesn't murder me of course.

Raven

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Entrée 45 B (All hallows eve)

Well, it was that time of the year again. The goblins, though mostly

unable to tell time and very much likely had no idea what in the Hell was

happening all around them were ecstatic from the date of the Equinox on. It

was as if even they, the pathetic, loathsome, wretched creatures that hey are

could already sense the magick in the air all around them.

I will have to go back a little to explain all of what happened

this year.

I had been in my library in the castle. It was October first,

1985 on Earth and here in The Underground. I was preparing for Samhain, All

hallows eve, Feralia, The Hungry Ghost festival, Shadow fest, Old Hallowmas,

Calangaeaf, The Festival of the dead, Obon, The third festival of harvest,

The druid's New Year, Devil's night, The feast of lanterns. It was All

hallows, Mischief night, The eve of all saints, All saints day, Sraddhas.

This was The day of the dead, El Dia de los Muetres… Halloween. This time

of year is when the borders between all worlds is at it's thinnest. It is

when all magical powers and forces reach it's peak of abilities and potential

and it does not just last for one simple night though on that night it is at

it's highest point.

I would unleash my goblins on to Earth for a little mischief just as

I had done for years on October Thirty-first and take them back to The

Underground just before dawn November first. They would cause a little stir

up of havoc here and there but nothing too outrageous or serious, nothing

that would arouse more then a little attention, just enough for me to have

just a little fun. I know that it is a little sacrilegious considering that

it is a universally sacred night but I just could not resist with al the evil

propaganda that the day receives from the majority of still quite fearful and

superstitious mortals.

I loved and love this time of the year. The autumn leaves changing

their shades on Earth, the scent of pumpkins and apples in the air, the cool

breezes. It truly is my favourite time of the year, well not to mention

that it is also the time of the year when all my powers, all my skills are

increased nearly double.

Usually my powers are minimal on Earth. Of course I can change in

to the owl form. I can still form the crystals to offer a mortal his or her

dreams or make a few small objects appear but then disappear a few moments

later. I can take my goblins to Earth if I or their assistance is summoned.

I could do that and transport myself and another to The Underground but that

is usually the extent of it. Usually I would have no time manipulation

abilities except for in my own world, an exhausting ability that can only be

done once in a while anyway. Also I would not be able to disappear and then

appear quite as quickly as I do in The Underground. I have no control over

the physical environment and I most certainly cannot alter large pieces of

matter on Earth… but now, now this time of the year… This time of the year I

can do all that and perhaps more. The energy, the power of the season hums

in the air from the Equinox until the day after the winter's solstice. It is

a most powerful season in deed and I do thoroughly enjoy it quite a bit.

As I thumbed through old texts on magick, trying to decide what I

would do and where exactly I would send off my goblins for the day in my

private sanctuary of the castle's library I heard a small noise.

It was like the sound of static of a bad radio reception on Earth.

I placed down the book and walked over to the areas of my library

where I had heard the noise, behind a few isles of bookcases I saw him.

It was Apollo, the Greek God of sunlight, poetry and dance, painting

and sculpture, science, philosophy and youth.

His shoulder length curly blond hair hung around his shoulders. He had a

typically mischievous smile on his lips.

"Well, it isn't every day one of you decide to show up here." I

said

"Hello, Jareth." He said. "My," he glanced around the room "I never

thought of you as being much of a book worm. This is a surprise. ..of course

I'm surprised that there's any books in The Underground at all, considering

that half your subjects are illiterate."

I decided that enough was enough. "Why are you here? Is there

anything I can do for you or your father?"

He looked at me straight in the eyes and his tone became deadly

serious, something that I was not used to seeing from this particular entity.

"As a matter of fact there is something you can do for me."

I raised an eyebrow. "What do you want?"

He sighed. "No one has really believed in me for centuries..

save for a few here and there… but that's not enough. I do so miss the old

days when there were temples dedicated to me and prayers were said daily.

That belief is what kept me strong and now it is fading so I'm not powerful

enough anymore."

"I know the feeling. Of course I am currently working on something

that will re-invoke a fantastical belief in me." I said. "I offered Mr.

Henson his dreams and I will soon gain retribution. Why don't you just sell

the Greek God and Goddess images to a television network, sell the rights to

Hercules' Legendary Journeys or something?"

"I think I will try that, in about a decade or so. But right now I

need you to do something for me."

"What do you want?" I snapped as if I had something better to do.

"Now, Jareth… after all that we've been through together I would

think you would have a little more respect for me."

"Apollo, you and I had a bit of a falling out. Last we spoke we

were not on such great terms as I recall it."

"You owe me, Jareth!"

"For what?"

"For livening this place up a bit, for teaching your firies how to

sing and dance-"

"Oh, and I am so thankful for that too." I said sarcastically.

"-and for showing you the eighties rock image that you so obviously

fell in love with." He said as he examined my clothing and hair. "You know

the combination 1980's rock image and 18th century gentleman/ mid evil

sorcerer is a good look for you, Jareth. I wonder how long you intend to

keep this form."

"My fashion tastes are not your concern."

"Come on. I am the one who showed you the modern eighties rock

image."

"A lot of good that did. Jim Henson saw me and the first thing he

did was," I shuttered "compare me to David Bowie."

"Oh, come off it, Jareth. He is the closest Earthly image of you

there is and you know it. It's your human counter-part. We all have them.

It could be worse. I mean hell, my Earthly counter part is Billy Idol. Do

you think that I'm happy about that?"

I could not help but laugh. "You poor fool. Usually we are lucky

enough where our Earthly counterparts are not famous or well known at all. I

guess this generation decided to out stage us." There was something terribly

ironic in that both our Earthly counterparts seemed to now be more well known

then us.

I wiped a tear from my eye that had come with the laughter. "All

right, "Billy" so what do you want?" I said sarcastically.

"Shut up or I'll go back in time a decade and leave Ziggy Stardust AKA

David Bowie in The Labyrinth."

"You wouldn't dare!"

"I can and I would."

"All right. All right. So what do you want?"

"I need you to help me out with something."

"What?"

"There are these two children on Earth in San Francisco California.

They're homeless. They have kept a faith in me because of their artist

talents but now it's fading. I can't appear to them because my powers are

too weak to be of much help. I need you to go to them and keep their faith

in music and poetry alive."

"What do you want me to do, help them become rock stars?" I asked

sarcastically.

His grin seemed to lengthen as he smiled like a Cheshire cat. "Precisely."

"What?!?. Oh, no. You don't want me to pretend to be 'Him' do

you?"

"No, no, of course not. Lord knows you would probably botch it up

and have you both placed on the front page of a market, tabloid, magazine

rag. I can easily block their minds and any from making that comparison

while you are there. But I do need you to do this."

"Why? Why are these two children so important?"

"Because generations from now their children will write down

mythology and re-invoke a proper belief in me, increasing my powers. I come

to you because your magical skills are at it's peak this season as it is for

most entities of your.. your station."

"My station? What do you mean by 'my station'?

"You're one of those kind that are only really thought about

this season bot are at least thought about at all. ..if not then you might

just fade away in to nonexistence or…"

"..Or become a mortal from lack of power. I know. I know.

Personally I do not really think the latter would be so bad."

"Jareth, I really need your help with this one."

"All right. I'll go to Earth and help those children but you owe

me!"

"Fine."

"What exactly do you want me to do?"

"Enter them in to a music competition, a small one but see to

it that they win but they must win with their own skills. That's all."

"Fine. Show me these children."

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] JARETH 7 (Part 2 of 6)

From:

Date: Wed, 10 Nov 1999 21:30:50 EST

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He made a wide gesture and there we stood in an alley in San

Francisco California USA. The two children, Mark and Samantha (as he told me

their names were) were just walking by. I stood along side Apollo. "Are

they the little ragamuffins you want me to make in to musicians?"

He nodded.

I looked over the children. They were about eighteen years old

each, fairly young but not too young to begin a career.

"All right. I think I can do this." I said as I looked them

over from a distance, unseen by them.

"They need a lead singer." Apollo finally spoke up.

"Right. And you want me to climb up on a stage and start acting

like my Earthly counterpart for them? Are you out of your mind?!?"

"Look I shuffled it around in my head. And if I had to choose

between that new song that Billy has "White wedding" or "Let's dance" you

know I'd actually prefer your Earthly counterpart. Now you have high powers

and the skill to do this. Only win them a competition without any magical

manipulation then leave. Let them find a new singer after that. All they

have to do is win the competition. That will give them enough money to get

off the streets and in to the swing of modern life permanently and salvage a

belief in my importance or at least what I stand for- for the next

generation. Now will you do this for me or not?"

"You do owe me for this." I said. "This is quite a big favour.

This can takes months. You DO owe me!"

He narrowed his eyes at me. "Will you do it or not?"

" I'll do it." I said.

"Good. " He then disappeared.

I waited and watched from the shadows for a little while.

I knew the realm of the unseen beings must have been in trouble if "I" could

do something that Apollo, The God could not.

Mark looked at Samantha. I read in to their minds, a talent I did

not really like to exploit much and could usually hardly do on Earth. From

what I could tell, Samantha knew how to play the drums and Mark knew how to

play the guitar. They were too poor to afford these instruments.

Mark had sold his guitar months ago to pay for their meals for a

week. Samantha had not seen her drum set since she had run away from her

home a year before.

I emerged from the shadows so that they might see me.

"Hello children."

The boy looked at me strangely. He saw my hair and my eccentric

clothing style. I had been wearing a white frilled shirt with frilled cuffs,

cutting with a 'V' neckline. I wore my cicle pendent. I had on my usual

black leather gloves and the low, black leather brocade style stomach vest

that seemed meant for someone several sizes smaller. I also had on tight

gray leggings and slightly healed boots and my feathered, relayed and spiked

blond hair hung around my shoulders just so.

"Who the Hell are you?" The boy asked.

"Allow me to introduce myself." I said as I made a slight bow. "I am

Jareth and I am looking for a band of musicians. Would either of you know

how to play the guitar or the drums by any chance?" I asked.

The naïve young girl, Samantha smiled. "Yeah. I can play the

drums and Mark here knows how to play the guitar."

"Splendid." I said simply with a grin. "You two are just

what I was hoping for. Would you come with me, please?"

With a small trick of illusion and my heightened powers I made a

long, black, posh limousine pull up in front of them right at the entrance of

the alleyway.

The driver, though actually not a real man at all I gave enough

awareness to so that he might drive us to a warehouse down by the bay.

It felt good to have more advanced abilities though it was only

temporary.

The children stared at me blankly. They did not know what to make

of me. They thought that I was some rich lunatic but a small glimmer of

hope shown in Mark's eyes. He saw me as the break he and his companion had

been waiting for.

Eagerly they climbed in, having never actually been in a limousine before

they were both ecstatic.

"So where are we headed, man?" Asked the boy.

"Well, we are going to my private studio down town." I said.

"But now that I have you two to be the guitarist and drummer I will need one

more performer to be on keyboard and instrument synthesizers. Would you know

anyone fit for this position by any chance?'

"Well, there's this one girl, Marley." Said Mark. "But she's

sort of… quirky." He made a iffy, halfhearted, half decided, unsure,

wavering hand gesture.

"What do you mean 'Quirky'?" I asked.

Samantha giggled. "Well, she has just about every psychological

problem in the book."

"Oh." I said. "Well, I suppose she'll have to do. Where does she

live?"

They gave me the address of a small, run down apartment complex only

blocks from where I was going to take them…a squat house. The little tramp

they wanted me to hire as the keyboard person was living in a filthy squat.

All three of us walked up the stairs of the filthy, run down

building to get to our mentally disturbed keyboard artist.

The building was infested with roaches and rats and I doubted if it

even had running water. I do not think anyone was really supposed to be

living in there. This place as definitely a squat house, an abandoned refuge

for homeless street rats.

Mark did not even bother to knock. He opened the worn out wooden

door of the apartment In the living room of the apartment house she stood.

Her black curly hair was tangled around her head. She looked like something

the eccentric filmmaker Tim Burton would dream up. She stood in an old

fashioned white dress.

And had she bathed I might have actually called her pretty. She

held in her hand a half-filled bottle of liquor. She was drunk. She reeked

of her own body odor, her own sweat and tainted, liquor made potent breath.

She seemed paranoid as she looked at me. She seemed to know Mark

and Samantha.

"Who's he?" She slurred. He tongue was thick and heavy with the

liquor that she had ingested.

"Come now and sober up, love. I'm here to see to your future." I

said, trying my hardest not to seem disgusted by her or her life style.

"My future?" She laughed the cruel and ironic laugh of a drunkard.

"I ain't got no future. Don't you know I'm damned, man. It's like decade

of big brother, man.. Don't ya know what that means?"

I rolled my eyes. This was going to be harder then I thought.

"I need a person who can play the keyboard. Now come on, darling

and try to clear your head a little or I will look elsewhere. Now you can

come with us or not. The limousine is waiting out front."

"The limo?" She blinked and glanced at Samantha. "Did he just say

limo?"

Samantha smiled. She still could hardly believe it herself, that

they really had gotten their chance. "That's right."

"God!" Marley leapt up on to the couch that smelt a great deal

like cat urine and looked out the fogged and filthy window and saw the car

outside.

Her head seemed to clear a little. "Well, what are we waitin' for?

Let's go do whatever this nice, rich, insane man wants."

"Well, fancy the pot that dares to call the kettle black." I said

sharply.

Ten minutes later we pulled up in front of a run down warehouse.

I concentrated and saw to it that the inside was a proper, living

quarters apartment on the second floor and the first floor was a practice and

performance area as well as private sound studio.

They all looked crest fallen as they saw the run down building's

exterior.

"You want us to play here?" Mark asked.

"You've gotta be kiddin' me." One of the two girls said, I forget

which it had been just now.

I shook my head. "Come inside. dears. Looks can be deceiving. You

are judging far too much on eternal, physical appearances."

They followed me inside the building just as the limousine vanished.

They did not see it dissolve in to nothingness.

Inside was a small stage with advanced and modern sound equipment,

all the instruments they required.

The room was well lit and the equipment of all the best brand

names. A staircase led to the second floor that I had constructed with my

powers with three bedrooms.

I gestured to the stage. "Show me what you have got. Play

something"

Samantha leapt behind the drums. Mark took the guitar and Marley

staggered over the keyboard, nearly fainting on the stage twice.

They began to play what sounded like three different songs at once.

I covered my ears. "No, stop! That's dreadful. That's just

plane monstrous." They all heard me and stopped.

"Now," I said "I want you all to concentrate on keeping the same

rhythm.""

With a little effort of my powers I implanted in to their heads the

same beat and melody so that they could act in synch.

I smiled as the rhythm seemed to carry them and the heavy beat

progressed. "Not bad. Not bad at all."

They stopped after a short while, each amazed that the others seemed

to know what the one was playing.

"But neither one of us can sing and we need a song writer." Said

Samantha.

"Leave that to me." I said.

"You? You know how to sing and write music?" Asked mark

abruptly, not really believing that I was anything but an agent looking for a

band.

"Yes, I do." I said.

I climbed up on to the stage with them. I grabbed the hand held

microphone up off of it's stand and began to sing what David Bowie would

later claim as his own

"This is something I'd call Underground."

I magically made Samantha and Marley know the melody in advance.

I waited for the doubled drum beat, my signal to start singing.

I only did the first few verses for them.

"It's only forever, it's not long at all,

The lost and the lonely,

No one can blame you

For walking away

But too much rejection, uh, hu,

No love injection, no

Life can be easy,

It's not always swell,

Don't tell me truth hurts, little girl

'Cause it hurts like hell,

But down in The Underground

You'll find someone true,

Down in The Underground,

A land serene,

A crystal moon,

Ah, ha,

It's only forever,

It's not long at all,

The lost and the lonely,

That's Underground,

Underground…"

They had managed to pick up the beat and played the second portion of it

with my singing. They were enchanted, very nearly literally. I had them

skip the musical interlude that one would later be able to hear on the

Labyrinth movie soundtrack. But that is only if I would get my way with David

Bowie's soundtrack songs for the film that I have been plotting to have Jim

Henson bring to theatres in the cinema very soon.

This time the drum beat was steady as the keyboard beat was a little

more rapid.

All the background music of this song could have been done with a keyboard

but I am far too intelligent to have left that much responsibility to a

drunken, vagrant tramp.

A saxophone would sound good with this song as I would later hear David

Bowie do the song with that but I was not in the mood to go out and find

perhaps a beggar jazz musician.

" No one can blame you

For walking away,

But too much rejection uh, hu,

No love injection, no

Life can be easy,

It's not always swell,

Don't tell me truth hurts, little girl

'Cause it hurts like Hell,"

I had the echo of the microphone, the automatic vocal synthesizer

attachment then faded out the last verse where the words "hurts like Hell"

repeated and then faded in to oblivion as it echoed the word "Hell". This

was actually very simple.

But down in The Underground

You'll find someone true,

Down in The Underground…"

This actually felt good, leading a few mortals as opposed to my goblins

though glancing at Marley I would say some are just as bad.

"A land serene,

"A crystal moon, ah, ah,

It's only forever,

It's not long at all,

The lost and the lonely,

That's Underground,

Underground…"

I lowered my right hand as a gesture meaning fade out the song at this

point though that was not the actual end of the song. I had done enough to

show them that I could seeing just as well, perhaps better then that damned

mortal counterpart of mine.

They all looked at me with a look of admiration and approval, with a

spark of hope. "That was fantastic, man." Said Mark. "With a voice like

that you don't need us."

I smiled. "I know."

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] JARETH 7 (Part 3 of 6)

From:

Date: Wed, 10 Nov 1999 21:32:39 EST

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I climbed off the stage. "I want you three to stay here. I will

write some songs. The apartment upstairs is yours. If you want to be a

success you will not leave here, you will not betray my trust and you will

NOT question my authority. Is that clear?"

They all nodded but it was at this point that with a loud thud the

drunken figure of Marley collapsed on to the keyboard. "And for God's sake

keep her sober!" I said as I pointed at the drooling mess in the keyboard.

"Now, I must be off. I will be back in an hour or so."

I settled all arrangements. They would stay there and I would

give them all a small weekly allowance of three hundred dollars each in cash.

That would just appear in blank envelopes on their kitchen table at the end

of every week. I did that just so that I knew for certain that they would

not just run off and sell the stereo equipment.

I returned to The Underground for a short while. I only did this to see

that my world was still in semi-order and I was not needed for the time being

to settle any chaos that might arise.

I returned to San Francisco and found a newspaper at a public stand.

A competition was being held Halloween night at a nightclub only a few miles

from where my little rag tag troop was staying. This was so simple. I had no

idea what Apollo had been so worried about. A mortal could have just as

easily done this, I thought.

I returned to them and helped them "practice their sound" for half

the night. I returned to The Underground for a little rest and came back to

the band at noon the next day.

When I stepped in to the building I saw that Marley was squatting in

the corner.

Mark and Samantha were just staring at her.

Mark looked up at me. "Uh, we have a slight problem, J…"

I rolled my eyes. "What is it? Didn't I tell you to keep her sober?"

Samantha made a slight face. "That is Marley sober, and with a

hang over… we warned you, she's… quirky."

As if on a signal Marley began to scream on top of her lungs.

"Ahhhghg! The voices! The voices won't stop! Ahhgghh! Evil… Evil…

Goblins.. The goblin king is near by… I can feel it…. I can sense him….

Ahhhhgggh!"

I was taken back at this. I stepped back. She had caught me off guard

with that little rant.

Samantha sighed. "She thinks that there are strong and powerful

'Magical' beings everywhere. She claims she can sense them "

"Oh, I see." The poor girl apparently had minimal abilities in the

occult and it had obviously shattered her reason. "hmm…"

I held out my gloved hand to Marley. "Come with me, dear."

She screamed. "Don't touch me!"

She was trembling. She was severely paranoid.

I looked at Mark and Samantha. "I'll need a moment alone with

her. Would you two please go up to the apartment and wait for us there?"

"A lot of good that will do." Mark scoffed. He grabbed

Samantha's hand. "Come on."

Once I knew the two were gone I stood up. With a split moment of

miner effort I changed my clothing to the black leggings, long sleeved black

shirt, leather gloves and high collared , deep blue and outwardly black cape

that I often would wear when appearing to a mortal who would summon for my

assistance.

Marley stopped screaming and stared up at me.

"You know who I am, don't you, Marley?" I asked.

"Y-yes…" She said.

"Do you know why I'm here?" I asked.

She shook her head.

"I'm here because an acquaintance of mine wants to help out Mark and

Samantha. I am only here to see to it that this rag-tag little band succeed.

Is that understood?"

She nodded.

"Now stop your screaming. Mark and Samantha are not to know about

this."

Marley climbed to her feet. Her glazed eyes suddenly seemed to

clear. She laughed. "Too late!"

"What?!?"

She pointed behind me. I turned around abruptly, almost afraid that

Samantha and Mark would be right there. I was relieved but only momentarily

when I saw that they were not. I saw the small video camera in the corner of

the room.

"That's connected to a monitor upstairs. Sam and Mark are watchin'

all of this." She mock bowed. "Your 'Tightness."

I looked at her and read in to her mind for the first time. "It was

all an act, wasn't it? You know who I was all along." I was just about

ready to wring her neck.

Mark and Samantha cautiously came back down stairs to the studio.

They both looked at me with fear and confusion.

"It was all true.. It was all true. My God, Marley, you were right!

It wasn't just your paranoia! You wee ACTUALLY right!"

Marley grinned and walked past me over to her friends. "I may

drink a bit too much but when I hear a song describing the 'Supposedly'

fictitious world of The Underground, which has been mentioned in many

mythologies as the world of the goblins, by a stranger who somehow knew our

hearts desires I sort of caught on."

I looked at them all and smiled. "Well, this has certainly changed

things a bit. I am surprised though. I made a gesture and the VCR recording

of my small exposure of power appeared in my hand. I threw this at the wall

where the video camera had been placed in the corner. The video cassette

shattered as it hit the camera's lense, shattering it.

The black film and the glass lense of the camera fell to the floor as

exposed wires now dangled from where the video tape had hit the camera.

"I'll have none of that, thank you." I said. "I do not really feel

like ending up on the six o'clock news if that's quite all right with you."

"My God." Said Samantha. "And you came to Earth to help us get in

to music?"

I smiled. "It seems so petty now but yes. I am really doing it

for an old friend. No one is to know, is that understood? If you expose me

your futures do not stand a chance, is that clear?"

They nodded.

"My God." Samantha said again. "This is all like some sort of an..

an enchantment."

"Hmmm… This gives me an idea for a song." I said simply as if this

were all still quite casual for me.

The three stared at me.

I decided to take order and control while I still had the chance

to. "I have entered us in to a music competition. If you don't mind I named

the band 'The dreamers.' The competition is on the thirty first and I will

see to it that we WILL win."

"With your powers, of course we will." Said Marley.

Mark was still trembling. He could not adapt to the sudden new

crease in his reality.

"I'm afraid not." I said simply. "This will have to be won by real

talent. That's why you need practice. Last night I used my powers to assist

your performing abilities to as they would be if you reached the extent of

your potential. Now I want to see you do the same thing on your own."

They nodded. Now, until I return practice with songs you all

already know.

"Return? Where… where are you going?" asked Mark.

I smiled. "Back to The Underground. I will be back in about a

week."

I deliberately transformed in to the owl in front of them and they

stared in awe as I flew from the room.

That whole week I remained in The Underground. I prepared for All

Hallow's eve. Do to an earlier visitation I decided that I would unleash my

goblins in a small town in Upstate New York. I would also have them make a

little mischief in a suburb in Canada. I would personally visit Mexico a

day later for El Dia de los Muetres and have a little fun there.

I kept watch over my little music group through a crystal orb every

other day. They were performing quite well and getting better at it. Mark

did his best to keep Marley away from Alcohol but her withdrawal from her

addiction made hr edgy and irritable.

When I appeared to them next it was a week until the competition.

I held in my hand several copied pieces of paper. It was a song I had

written and prepared for them for the competition. My exposure of power had

inspired it.

The three stood around bickering like small children. I could have

heard their screams from the street outside.

I deliberately appeared in front of them abruptly. "What is all this

nonsense?" I snapped as the sparks and sparklets, shimmering dust of my

entrance from oblivion settled around me.

"I'm not dealing with this! I'm not going to live here with

this.. this idiot!" Marley screamed about Mark.

Samantha had a pleading look in her eyes as she stepped over to

me. "Jareth, make them stop fighting. Marley is bitching that Mark is

stifling her creativity."

"Creativity!" Cried Mark. "Ha, her idea of creativity is a ten

minute song of just her screaming "Oh, oh, oh, oh, yeah, oh!"

"Well, it's a Hell of a lot better then what you've been tryin' to

do." Marley snapped at him.

I rolled my eyes. "Would you both calm down! I am the lead singer

here. I just came up with the song for the performance competition."

I handed each of them the paper.

"The enchantment?" Marley seemed baffled. After reading it over

she placed the paper down on the table

"Hey, this isn't so bad." Said Samantha.

"Yeah, we could use this." Said Mark. "…unlike the crap

Marley's been wanting us to do without you."

That was when Marley became violent. She grabbed up Mark's

electric guitar and threw it across the room.

"Marley!" I quickly made a new one appear. "Now enough is enough!"

"That's it!" Cried Mark. "I'm not working with this. No. No. I

can't. I'm not working with this!"

He stormed away upstairs to his room.

Marley tore at her tangled mess of hair. "I can't stand this! He

won't let me create. I must create! He must let me create!" She kept

repeating this again and again and louder and louder, each cry more frantic

then the last. She shook and trembled with her own fury like a child who had

his or her toy stolen away.

Samantha tried to calm her down. "Don't worry. He will. But I do

agree with Mark. I think we should use Jareth's song."

"I can't take this anymore!" Marley stood up and stormed out the

door.

I cried out after her. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To get a drink!" She snapped as she walked away and the heavy door

swung shut.

I sighed. "Well, this is great! Just great!" I screamed to no

one in particular.

Mark reemerged once he knew that Marley was gone.

I looked at both Mark and Samantha. "Don't you think that I have

better things to do then to deal with this!?! What is wrong with you people?

Don't I give you everything you need and want? Didn't I promise you fame

and success? And I cannot even leave a short while without you going at each

other's throats like.. like." I kicked over the microphone stand. "like a

pack of filthy goblins! Well, you can all forget all of this." I looked up

at the ceiling. "I tried! I'm going back to The Underground!"

I looked back at the two remaining. "I did not have to do this. This

is a waste of my time. He was wrong. You will never amount to anything.

I'm leaving!"

I disappeared, leaving the two their in silent disappointment.

I appeared back in my throne room. I began to pace the floor. I

am afraid that I had let my temperament get the better of me.

Apollo appeared in front of me. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing." I tried to seem like nothing was wrong.

"Everything's gone to Hell. It's all in chaos with them."

"I know." I said.

"Well, do something!"

"And what do you want me to do? I cannot force them to get

along."

"Jareth, please…"

Was he begging? Was he actually begging me?

I looked at him. "Well, what should I?"

:"Well, you're the one who complicated things by scooping up that

pathetic street rat, the insane woman."

"What should I do exactly then, kick Marley out? She's an arse but

she's the best keyboard artist I could find and she knows my secret."

"And now who's fault is that, Jareth?"

"What should I do with them? I do not like giving up on a

challenge."

"I know you don't. Just regain control. Organize them. Surely

if you can do it here you can do it with a couple of mortals."

I laughed bitterly. "You would call this organized?" I gestured

around.

He sighed. "I never thought you were one for giving up, Jareth."

He shook his head and disappeared.

He was right though. I should not have given up so easily. I waited

until everything had calmed a little.

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] JARETH 7 (Part 4 of 6)

From:

Date: Wed, 10 Nov 1999 21:33:14 EST

--------

I watched in on them later that night from a crystal orb. Marley and

Mark now seemed to be getting along though the lunatic, Marley seemed a

little unhappy.

Mark placed down his guitar after playing a few chords out of a tune.

"It's no use. We need Jareth."

"I agree." Said Samantha.

Marley was still living above the studio as were Mark and Samantha.

They had no where else to go.

Two nights later I did it.

Marley was sitting alone in her room, sitting at a desk with a half

filled bottle of whine next to her.

I appeared in Marley's room. It was a disgusting mess. Books and

papers lay everywhere. A half finished drawing in pastel, coloured pencils

lay on her bed. I looked at it closely and realized that it was a sketch of

myself she had done from apparent memory.

I sat down and examined it. The details were amazing. "Did you do

this yourself?" I asked.

She leapt out of her seat as clumsily as any drunken fool would in her

position. She had not known that I was there. She quickly composed herself

as best as she could.

She staggered over to me. "Yeah. Yeah, I did it. What's it to ya?"

I smiled. "It's pretty good."

She blinked. She had not expected the compliment. I do not think

that anyone had ever complimented her before in all of her life.

And to tell the truth it was a pretty good picture. It may as well

have been a chalky photograph taken when I would happen to have looked my

best.

She searched my words as if she would find the cynical sarcasm

that she was apparently used to hearing. Had no one ever said a nice thing

to this girl in her entire life?

She stuttered. "Uh.. um.. well, thank you."

I examined the picture closely. Fondly it made me seem ten years

younger then the way I usually look in appearance and it made me seem in a

pleasant mood, something that I had not been in a long while. It had an

animated, cartoon-ish feel to it yet it was quite detailed, stylish and

unique.

"May I keep this?" I asked.

She smiled. "Yeah sure." She turned and seemed ashamed that she had

been drinking again. "You really think it's that good, huh?"

"Oh, yes, in deed I do." I said with a smile. "But as soon as OUR

competition is over you are getting help for your.. your problem." I

gestured to the bottle behind her and it vanished.

She frowned slightly. Already she thought on how she was going to

replace that bottle, hopefully without my notice. I could tell. I was not

totally immune to the human world. I had seen this sort of thing, I knew the

nature of addiction from exposure to people suffering from their own hungers,

their mental damnations.

I sighed as I folded up the piece of paper.

This night I was dressed in a deliberately lopsided, brown leather

jacket where the collar was purposely exaggerated. One side of the folded out

collar was deliberately cut five inches too long and came to a triangular

point against my chest. I wore a black, net like, cape attachment on the

back of this that draped down. I was in leather boots and gloves as usual.

Under the jacket that was half opened I wore a frilled white shirt with a

deep 'v' necked collar. I also wore my cicle pendent and a pair of blue

leggings that looked so much like jeans that one could hardly tell the

difference as to that it might be otherwise.

I placed the paper in the pocket of my jacket.

"I want your help with something." I said to her as I leaned back,

sitting on her bed as she sat at her desk.

"What?"

"I went over the song I wrote. I think the lyrics are just fine.

But I need a new sound, a new melody. Can you compose one before the

competition, say by tomorrow night?"

"What?"

"I know you know how to write music and I know you feel frustrated and

have a need to create. Do you think you can do it?"

She only nodded.

"Good."

I made myself disappear.

I kept close watch on her that whole next day from a distance in the

form of an owl. She knew she had a problem. She did her best to restrain her

own inner beast. She drank only one glass of wine at dinner time that day

and by seven PM she had finished writing the new music for the song I had for

the group to perform at the competition.

I appeared again to her and read it over. I could hear it in my mind.

This was not so bad. She actually did have some talent as a composer.

I managed to gather all three of them in to the studio, practice area.

"Jareth!" Cried Mark. "I thought you were gone for good!"

"I do not give up so easily." I said simply.

I handed the papers out with the new music and the lyrics. "This is

the song you WILL Perform and you WILL win! Is this understood?"

They all looked it over.

"Hey," said Mark. "this is better then that original one you gave

us."

"I know." I said. "Marley wrote the music to it. I only did the

lyrics."

"What?"

"Huh?"

Mark and Samantha looked at Marley surprised. Considering her usual

condition they had not expected anything good to have come out of her at all.

:"This is why I had wanted you to keep her sober." I said simply.

"Now, let's try and do this. We are going to rehears this around the clock

until it's time to go up on that stage."

We tried the song out once. "Not bad." I said. "But I think that

went a little over the top. Shall we try it again?"

I had them do it a few times until I knew they were legitimately doing

their best.

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] JARETH 7 (Part 5 of 6)

From:

Date: Wed, 10 Nov 1999 21:34:05 EST

--------

Samhain: The night of the competition.

I had sent my goblins off early to make their rounds of mischief.

The rock band was ready to go. With me as their leader they

actually believed that they could pull it off. My powers were at their peak

and I was tempted to use them but I repressed the urge.

Many bands played before us. Most were not so good. Finally after

what felt like hours The dreamers were called out on to the stage.

I could feel a rush of electricity as the crowd applauded us. A light

shown down on me and then another on Marley and Mark and then Samantha.

I was dressed simply in the outfit that I had first appeared to them

in. I looked down at the floor of the sage and then I looked up abruptly.

It was not a large audience but it was an audience. All eyes were focussed

in on us.

I could feel the tension in the air. It was marvelous. It felt like

a kind of magck.

We walked out on to the stage.

A harsh, intensely bright light shown down on me first.

With a graceful thrust I made a slight turn.

Mark strummed the guitars opening chords as a yellow light shown

down on to him.

This was the cue for the drummer, Samantha and the one on the keyboard,

Marley to do the opening of the song.

Another light flashed on to Samantha, the drummer who held her

sticks in one hand like chop sticks and then with a quick thrust she threw

one in to her other, waiting, empty hand. With a keen sense of rhythm she

began the beat.

A quick rhythmic beat from the drums opened the song. Marley

started next on the keyboard as a reddish light shown down on to her,

surrounding her in an eerie glow.

I moved with the music as if it had entranced me and in a way it

had. I felt my head swimming from the energy and momentum of it. It seemed

that this moment was more potent then any out pouring of my magical powers

and it was at this moment that filled with a bitter envy I knew finally why I

had hated my Earthly counterpart so very much.

I raised his hands over my head and clapped to the drumbeat for a

few moments.

I held in my hand the hand held microphone and gestured to the audience. "We

ARE the dreamers!" I just hoped that no being at all in the universe

recognized me at that moment. A recording of that would have been most

humiliating. Ah, well I did not care about all that just then.

I was scarcely sure that they had heard me as they cheered. The

audience was already enjoying the beat.

Mark placed his hands steadily on to the guitar.

I spun around once on the tips of my boots and then began to sway

my hips in precision to the music. In private this would have looked

actually quite ridiculous but on stage it appeared that the audience was

loving it. And because I was the one doing it, it was just perfect.

The music vibrated the stage and swam together forming a great

melody out of several countless sounds that swirled and mixed together like

the ingredients of a great stew of noises. It was a spinning of swirled and

mingled colour forming a fantastic and beautiful image, a painting of sound.

I stepped forward about five steps and then moved full circle, turning in

circles for a moment or two, then the drumbeat slowed a little and this was

my cue to prepare to sing as I danced.

The smoke from the machines that I had prepared in advance was

rising around my ankles and swirled up to my knees. It was hard for me to

see my own boots but since I knew the steps to my own dance moves by heart I

honestly did not really need to see my legs at all. Most good dances did not

really need to look down at all when dancing any way; they just let the

rhythm take them as I was doing just then.

I looked intensely at the crowd. I had a purpose for doing this,

of course I would be damned if I knew then what it was other then that an old

companion of mine had asked me to and I was passive enough to have complied

to… this. Well, what did I really have to complain about? I was actually

enjoying this.

I looked at the blurred and vague faces from beyond the stage

lights. They were my audience and they were here just to see me…. And the

musical competition, of course… But that was besides the point.

This was fantastic.

I refused to acknowledge my own fear. What fear? Fear was my

enemy just then. It had always been my greatest enemy.

It came suddenly, that magical moment when the music, the singer

and the audience all melded together as one. And this was the only time ever

that I had ever truly ever felt connected to anything other then to myself.

I was connect to them. I had never felt anything like it before. It was

fantastic.

Oh, it was absolute bliss.

It was as if I had achieved a state of nirvana in this, that I had

become one with everything in enlightenment and physical and mental

perfection. It was totally fabulous. It was absolutely amazing. I seemed

actually contented, and that was the magic of it all, the great and powerful

illusion. And this was so utterly perfect and yet no one knew what it

exactly was that achieved this splendid moment fixed forever, at least for me

at any rate, in time.

The whole mortal world seemed to have heard me and now as they fell

in to the music with me as I was the whole world. I and the audience came

together. We were one in the sound and vision, in the song.

Now I let the music move me in time to the song so that his whole

form turned and folded as if yielding to a distant signal, forcing me to

dance with as much grace and beauty as any creature possibly could. The

music entranced and enthralled me as well as the crowd and without any reason

but to be the actual music I danced.

I let the strength and the passion of the song carry him.

And then in a precise note I sang.

I had the greatest singing voice the rock world; this world had eve known and

would know. It was a shame I could not stay and pretend to be HIM a little

while longer as he would soon pretend to be me.

I was proud of this. I knew it. I was not human after all and I

took all the sounds that humans found pleasing and altered them to make my

singing voice which with all my power only just sounded like that damned

Earthly counterpart of mine. The mortal world seemed to love me at that

moment.

Some seemed to fear me in that crowd. They loved me. If I would

keep this up for just.. just a little while they ALL would do as I would say.

I could conquer the universe like this, with gaining their admiration. But

at that particular moment I was their slave. They could have anything they

wanted from me. I had total control and power over them, that spell bound

audience and I loved it.

My voice was the greatest thing they had ever heard. Woman would

swoon at the sound of it and men longed to dance to it. Everyone seemed to

love it when I finally spoke up the opening lyrics..

My voice was heard through the building loud and clear. Enhanced

and loud, it bounced as it vibrated off of the walls smacked everyone

simultaneously across the face like a large hand, painted purple for the sake

of emotion, screaming, needing to be known and understood. Oh, it was

glorious.

It echoed through the room. No sound had ever seemed so loud at

that moment. My own voice hurt my ears for a moment before I allowed myself

to adapt to it's strange and amplified sound.. I had wanted it that all of

the audience would hear the same thing, my own voice rising above all else

over the crowd's cheers. It was alien to me, the way that my own voice

sounded, raised in volume over speakers. If I made just one mistake the

whole world, it seemed would have heard it.

Well, it was too late to turn back now. My song had already begun.

The music had long ago come in. It was loud and thundered as it

echoed through the room. It was loud. It was pure and it was raw. I loved

it. It was the greatest thrill of my life. This was beyond anything I could

ever experience in my own world, The Underground. This was better then the

fear and admiration of a few half witted goblins. This was real. This was

beyond anything I had ever known. This was fantastic.

I made a few graceful dance moves to the music as it rushed. A

stretched step here, and there. It was difficult because it was a smaller

stage then I had anticipated n but it was workable.

I made a graceful turn with my microphone in my hand. I became one

with the music itself, that it was so pure. I waited for the moment, the

exact moment to start singing.

So enthralled I was by the sound and feel of it all that I was afraid

that I had forgotten it but now. I had remained focussed enough.

Then the moment came. It was precise and enchanting moment when the

music and the poetry became one and the song An enchantment was borne.

"This is an enchantment,

This is an enchantment,

An enchantment"

The three sang before me. That was my signal to start really singing.

"A crystal offers a few one dream,

It never lies, if you hold a dream for it never dies,

The game is won with the faith behind your eyes,

This is the only true prize left you know,

And here is our prize, playing this show,

And here we go…"

The beat quickened and the guitar seemed to take on a life of it's

own. There was just so much passion, so much energy up on that stage. I was

actually falling in love with this and it was at that moment that I knew I

hated my Earthly counterpart even more out of pure and simple envy.

"This is an enchantment,

This has got to be an enchantment,

An enchantment"

"A quick sight of how life could be,

One spark of light to show the way in to the light,

No mortal man can possible win against us this night,

The voice that calls from beyond this place

Is telling you that you can beat fate,"

"This is an enchantment,"

"You have been dreaming for what feels like an eternity,

But you know you can move beyond this insanity,

The voice that calls from beyond this place

Is telling you that you can beat fate,"

"This is an enchantment" They sang together as a unit.

"This is an enchantment-

That can be granted by only one,

This grace that has lasted for over a thousand years

Shall never be gone,"

"Be gone" The three sang as back up to my voice.

"This is an enchantment

That can be granted by only one,

This grace that has lasted for more then an infinity

Shall never be gone,

This flame is burning from deep inside of me,

I see your secret fantasies,

You are the only ones,"

"This is an enchantment"

"You have been dreaming for what feels like an eternity,

But you know you can move beyond this insanity,

The voice that calls from beyond this place

Is telling you that you can beat fate,"

This grace that has lasted for more then an infinity of years

Shall never be

Shall never be,

Shall never be gone,"

"This is an enchantment,

An enchantment,

This had got to be an enchantment,

An enchantment,

This is an enchantment ,

A crystal offers a few one dream,

It never lies, if you hold a dream for it never dies,

The game is won with the faith behind your eyes,

This is the only true prize left you know,

And here is our prize, playing this show,

And here we go…

A quick sight of how life could be,

One spark of light to show the way in to the light,

No mortal can possible win against us this night,

The voice that calls from beyond this place

Is telling you that you can beat fate,"

"This is an enchantment"

"You have been dreaming for what feels like an eternity,

But you know you can move beyond this insanity,

The voice that calls from beyond this place

Is telling you that you can beat fate,"

"This is an enchantment"

"This flame is burning from deep inside of me,

I see your secret fantasies,

You are the only ones,"

"This is an enchantment"

"You have been dreaming for what feels like an eternity,

But you know you can move beyond this insanity,

The voice that calls from beyond this place

Is telling you that you can beat fate,"

"This is an enchantment,

This has got to be an enchantment,"

That can be granted by only one,

This grace that has lasted for more then an infinity

Shall never…

Shall never be gone,"

"Gone,"

This is… This is an enchantment,

You are not the only ones,

That can be granted by only one,

This grace that has lasted for more then an infinity

Shall never…

Shall never be gone,"

"Gone,"

"Yeah, this is an enchantment"

"An enchantment,"

"This has got to be an enchantment,"

This I an enchantment…

Enchantment…

Enchantment,

Enchantment,

This IS an enchantment!"

The song ended and the music faded off in to oblivion. I made a slight

bow as I placed the microphone back on to the stand.

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] JARETH 7 (Part 6 of 6)

From:

Date: Wed, 10 Nov 1999 21:35:28 EST

--------

Needless to say we had won. Later I would think that our song had

sounded a bit too much like the Queen song A kind of magic. How as I to know

that the lead singer of Queen, Freddie Mercury had somehow been in the

audience?

I had to admit that it had been fun, standing up on that stage as

I had.

We returned to the studio to celebrate. That's where I told them

that I was not going to stay with them, that I had to return to The

Underground.

"What do you mean, you can't stay?" Cried Mark who obviously

envisioned his rock music career over before it had begun.

"I am sorry." I said. "It is not that I do not want to stay. I

really do want to stay. But I had promised to help you win this so that you

can get your start. I have a whole alternate reality to keep control of. I

cannot sit here and pretend to be a rock star for you all."

"But we need you!" Cried Samantha.

I shook my head. "No. You don't need me. Find a new lead singer.

You are sure to come across one pretty good. The band is you. You are the

music. I can't stay here. I have to go." I sighed. I did not really wish

to leave them. "You may keep the studio and your apartment. I have

documents that claim it as the property of Jeremy Smith, an alias of mine."

They all looked crest fallen. "Now, don't be like that." I said

sharply. "I did not have to help you at all!" I tried to seem, look and act

cold and cruel, a role I had taken on before but never felt quite so

comfortable in. It failed. My emotion naturally broke through. "You can

make it on your own." I said. "Apollo seems to think so." I then made my

way to the door.

"Wait…" Called Mark.

"Will we ever see you again?" Asked Samantha.

Marley kept silent as if she was in deep contemplation.

I turned and looked at them as I smiled. "Yes. One day years from now.

I will be back to see how you are fairing."

I walked out the door and as if I was a mortal man I walked down the

street. I was whistling to myself when I paused. I saw a jack-o-lantern in

a window. I realized that in deed it was still All hallows Eve.

I would go to Mexico at dawn for El Dia de los Muetres, (The day of the dead)

all I hoped was that I would not be stuck have to have tea with a chavatio

(Goat sucker) or with the ghostly La Liorona (The weeping woman). I did not

wish to accidentally encounter Monita Muerte (Sister death) herself. She is

just so damned depressing.

It was late. All the young trick or treaters had scurried home and

were safely tucked away in their beds by now. I looked down at my feet as I

stepped on something that crunched and it was not mere dried leaves. It was

a plastic mask that I had half crushed. And the irony is that it was a

goblin mask. I smiled as I mused to myself. All my goblins were off on

earth making mischief where as I had been making music.

I then remembered an old Halloween tune that children used to sing not

so many years ago, about fifty or sixty years ago at the most I would think.

I was so bad at keeping track of that sort of thing. I walked along and

began to sing this old song to myself.

"Trick or treat,

Smell my feet,

Give me something good to eat,

Come out,

Come out,

The goblins are out!

Come out,

Come out,

The goblins ARE out!

Trick or treat,

Smell my feet,

Give me something good to eat,

Come out,

Come out,

The goblins are out!

Come out,

Come out,

The goblins ARE out! "

I smiled to myself. I think that had been the best Samhain for me in

centuries.

Sincerely,

Jareth, The Goblin King

-----------------------------------------

Small update:

I have recently checked up on the little band. It has been six months

since the competition.

Marley had been checked in to a rehabilitation clinic and has been

sober for the last four months. Marley, Mark, and Samantha seem to be well

off. They found a new lead singer, a very talented young man. Their band

appears to be a success. And now I think Apollo owes me one Hell of a favour

for all of this.

-Jareth, the Goblin King, (Earth time and date 4/30/86 2:53 PM)

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] JARETH 8 Part 1 of 2

From:

Date: Tue, 23 Nov 1999 00:47:02 EST

--------

Hello again everyone,

I hope you are enjoying these, if not then just tell me and I

will stop posting these. I think you might like this one. It's a little…

odd.

Yes, I have another one. …And no I am not insane…. All right, so

maybe I am. But then again you all should know this by now.

I think that you all just might enjoy this one. Here is another

entrée from the journal of The Goblin King.

As I keep saying I sort of "borrowed" this from the journal of a

close…. Friend if he doesn't murder me of course.

Small warning: This one is a bit psychotic.

This also gives an explanation as to why Jareth has never taken away any

of your particularly annoying and frightening, dysfunctional family members

if you had called upon him to do so around the holiday season.

Raven

-------------------------------------------

Entrée 14226 B ( You deal with it!)

"Oh, For God's sake! I'm coming! I'm coming!" I had called out to

no one in particular, knowing that no one really heard me or was paying any

mind to what I was saying at all.

I was at that moment far too groggy to argue the call to answer.

Ever since the release of The Labyrinth movie to the cinema I had been

hearing them. Maybe if I actually bothered to answer this one they all would

just shut the Hell up for at least just a little while. First no one would

summon me for years at a time, now I was getting three or four calls a day.

It was exhausting.

"I wish the goblins would come and take you away… right now!" The

young boy had said to his aunt who had been watching after him while his

parents had been away. Before my minions had actually responded to the call

I heard the young boy say under his breath "Let him deal with it!"

This was interesting and somewhat new. I had not had an adult

wished away in to The Underground in quite some while. Perhaps I would be

able to have an intellectually based discussion with this person. Of course

as I would learn later a discussion alone would be difficult to hold with

this person.

I was scarcely sure at this time as to what I would do with this fourty five

year old woman.

She was definitely far too old to be made in to a goblin and I was

not aroused by her physically and I knew and would understand very little of

her intellectually.

I staggered out of my bedchamber. It was not even dawn yet and I had

only fallen asleep an hour before hand. Contrary to what many in the mortal

realm of Earth had begun to think about me I did and do in fact sleep.

The goblins had leapt in to action, much to my surprise, before I.

They had actually, acting upon impulse and instinct had already brought the

woman to the castle and it was more then apparent that the one who had wished

her away did not want her back.

I stepped in to the throne room. I tried to shake my groggy,

weariness from my lack of sleep from the night before.

My cape was barely in place. I was tired. I had to keep my head

clear though I would have much preferred to lay back down and deal with this

human later on…. Say, some time AFTER noon.

The woman was short, a bit on the plump side, dark skinned and had a

strangely innocent child like expression about her. Her hair was short, dark

brown and curly. She wore a purple sweater that was stained in large

blotches of brownish smudges of faded colours caused by spilt bleach that

advertised the New York City University on the front in bold white letters "N

Y U"

The woman looked around, a bit confused but then she seemed to settle

a bit too fast.

I folded my arms and smiled slightly. "Well, well. What have we

got here?"

My goblins laughed, already scheming as to what they might be able

to do to this person. I placed a hand in the air to imply that I wished to

speak and that they should remain quiet for their master.

The woman narrowed her eyes at me. "Just who or what exactly are

you?"

I made a slight bow. "I am Jareth, The Goblin King. And you are now

in my castle."

She made a smug, slightly sarcastic smile as she folded her arms in

mocking me. "Jarod, The Goblin King?"

"My name is Jareth." I said politely correcting her simple error. I

nodded. "Yes, that's right though, I am The Goblin King. My name is Jareth."

She placed her hand in the air where the palm faced me, as if to say

that daytime talk show cliché phrase "Talk to the hand, because the face

doesn't understand." I did so hate that sort of thing.

She half rolled her eyes, perhaps to the limit that she actually

could and she sighed before saying in a high pitched, loud and sarcastic tone

"Norrr-malll!"

I ignored that little comment as best as I could.

She then made a disgusted face as if she had just stepped up to

The Bog of Eternal Stench and had sniffed in a deep breath. She then said in

that tense and nasally voice "What the Hell are you wearing, Jerrin?"

"My name is Jar-eth!" I said again, pronouncing it phonetically, a

little bit irritable.

I looked down. My clothing seemed perfectly all right to me. I

was in a pair of black leather boots, a red and black velvet shirt, the style

of which David Bowie wore in the Escher room in the movie adaptation of

Sarah's little adventure through my Labyrinth. I wore a pair of

charcoal-coloured leggings and a pair of tightly fitting leather gloves. I

wore my black cloak with the high collar that turned in-ward making a curving

motion as it pressed out at my throat. It was a bit eccentric but it was my

taste in fashion and as the king of The Underground I had perfect right to

dress in anyway that I chose.

My hair was as I usually wear it now, the upper part layered and

spiked out ward like a crushed, over grown allow plant, as the longer

strands hung over my shoulders and went down my back only about five inches.

"What about my apparel?"

She then placed her hand in the air where the palm was facing me as

she rolled her eyes partially and turned her face away for a moment as she

said again "Norrr-malll, Jeremy!"

"My name is Jareth! It's J- A- R- E- T- H! And now listen here, Kara

James!" I said as I stepped over to her. Now I had caught her attention.

Now it seemed that she was frightened as she damn well should have been. She

looked up at me, she was only about half my height level. "I am master of

this world and I choose what is acceptable or not, not you. Is that clear?"

She sighed again. "Boooore-ing, Gareth!" She then made a slightly

choked grunting sound in her throat that sounded a great deal like a pig

oinking or someone snoring. Did she have Terret syndrome?

I was beginning to think that she was mispronouncing my name on

purpose. I am JARETH, The Goblin King!" I said as I stepped closer towards

her.

She stepped by me and then flopped down, sitting in my very throne

"I'm bored."

"So you want me to entertain you, I suppose." I said cynically.

"Shall I do for you a tap dance?"

She grunted slightly from her throat like an animalistic beast of

some sort. "Rub my feet!"

"No."

"Rub my feet."

"I said, no."

"I'll give you a kiss."

"I said 'No,' what part of that do you not understand?"

"Rub my feet!" She said with a bit of a laugh.

"No! And… Get out of MY throne, you insolent woman!"

She stood up with a groan and then walked over to one of my goblins

that sat against the far wall of this filthy little throne room gnawing on a

chicken bone. She petted him on his head. The goblin cringed having never

been shown any affection especially from any humanoid being, myself most

definitely included in that statement. He dropped his meal to the ground.

He was clearly startled and confused about the actions and intentions of this

woman. He seemed baffled and confused. He looked to me as if unsure of how

to react and that I would give him simple directions. I shook my head.

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] JARETH 8 Part 2 of 2

From:

Date: Tue, 23 Nov 1999 00:47:13 EST

--------

She began to hug and cuddle this goblin and placed him in her arms. She

then began to rock him like he was a newborn, human baby. The goblin,

Squint, by name began to grunt and gurgle strange little happy noises that I

had never heard a goblin make before.

"Please, don't fondle my minion." I said simply.

She completely ignored me with the goblin in her small arms, the

creature about a foot smaller only then she herself was. She spoke to the

goblin. "Well, aren't you a cute, little thing. I think I'll call you

Dupla-Dee!"

"What the Hell?!?" You most certainly cannot keep him! He's

one of mine." I stepped over to her and her new found pet, MY goblin. "And

his name is Squint!"

"Squint, what sort of name is Squint?!? But then again what sorta

name is Jareth, anyways! Well, I like Dupla-Dee. So there!" She then stuck

her tongue out at me.

I tore the goblin from her arms and threw him to the ground. Squint

then ran off.

"Hey, that wasn't very nice, Jake!" The woman said.

"I never said that I was very nice." I said with a smile. "I can

be cruel, very cruel in fact. And my name is Jare-ith. Just simply Jareth,

not Jake, not Jerod, just Jareth! Are you saying it wrong deliberately just

to annoy me?"

She smiled slyly, with a childish mischievous-ness that she knew

that she was just beginning to get under my skin.

"Kara, beware. I have been patient up until now but you should

know right here and right now that indeed I can be cruel, very cruel!" I

sneered.

"Well, I'm not in to that sorta thing." She said as she walked away

from me as if bored by my presence in my OWN castle.

I appeared in front of her suddenly in a burst of sparkling

sparklets. "Now, listen! You will do as I say and you will not molest my

goblins, is that clear?"

She made a faint smile. "You know what, Jared?"

"It's… Ah Hell... Never mind!" I sighed. "What?"

She placed her hand in the air as if to push me away. "Care!"

I clenched my teeth together, trying to remain calm. "I should

dip you in to The Bog of Eternal Stench, you annoying, intolerable woman!."

I tried to seem intimidating. I formed a crystal orb in my right hand.

She saw the crystal ball that could have easily meant certain

doom for her. Quoth the woman "Norrr-mall!"

"You say that so often, I wonder what your basis for comparison is."

Dear God, I was becoming a cliché.

She looked at me blankly. "Huh?"

"What do you consider 'Normal'?"

"Um… Well, um.. .. Uh… Umm.. … Well, not this." She smiled smugly

as she began to giggle.

"Normality is but a conformist ideal, darling. It does not exist.

It is but an ideal like perfection itself. It is impossible. In fact for

someone to be totally normal in any world would in fact be abnormal for it.

It simply does not exist. Everyone has their own personality, quirks,

eccentrecies, and flaws. In fact a totally 'Normal' world would, I think be

quite boring, in fact."

She then began to make false snoring noises and then looked up

suddenly from her pretend standing sleep. "Boooore-ing!"

I was about to do something quite cruel to make her un-bored but

then she spoke up. "uh, oh."

"What is it?"

"I've got Sean."

"'Sean'? Who or what is Sean?"

She waddled a little as if walking were awkward now. She adjusted

her pants and that's when I realized what "Sean" meant to her. She was

beginning the menstrual cycle of blood. She was reacting to it as if she was

a twelve year old girl having the blood for the very first time and she had

pet named it "Sean" What the Hell was wrong with this woman?

She spoke up again, doubling over slightly as if she were suffering

from a cramping spasm of some sort. "And Mr. Hanky wants to visit."

"Mr. Hanky?" I stared at her blankly. I tried to read in to her

mind but it was just chaos.

She then made a terrible noise like the gurgling of The Bog of

Eternal Stench. I stepped back and placed my hand to my mouth and nose at

the sound and scent of the flatulent eruption. This woman was psychotic.

She then laughed nearly hysterically. "Hiiidy-ho, Jareth." She said

in a squeaky, nearly gender-less voice that was obviously mocking from

another source. "I'm Mr. Hanky, and I wanna be your pal. I'd come now but

I think Kara's constipated."

I was disgusted and confused by the insanity of it all. From what I

could deduce she was giving a piece of human feces in her bowels a cartoonish

voice and was pretending to be possessed by this… this entity, this piece of

fecal matter, Mr. Hanky. She was crude, obnoxious and disgusting. Dear God,

she looked human enough! Was she just an over-sized, misshapen and defiant

rebellious goblin? This was horrid!

"You are totally bonkers. You are completely out of your head!" I

stepped back from her a step. She was too disturbing, even for The

Underground.

She laughed and then released a bit more of her bodily gas in my

presence.

"That's it!" I cried.

I waved my hand in the air.

Kara (as was her name) and I now stood in the kitchen of a rather

large house in a suburban neighbor hood. It was mid-day there on Earth.

A young boy with sandy blond hair sat on the floor with a small

stuffed monkey in his arms. He looked no older then seven. This was the

child who had wished her away. I felt a great deal of pity for the child and

a bit of contempt that the child's parents had left him within the care of

this strange and somewhat frightening woman.

The boy looked at me blankly in confusion but not fear. His icy blue

eyes stared up at me as if to say, "Please, don't give her back! I don't

want her either."

Kara stood along side me and then squeaked in a voice like that of

an animated cartoon character for small children "Babies!"

At the sound of this wail half a dozen cats came running from the next

room. They leapt up on to the counter and all at once began to run up

against the strange woman.

"Mama's home. Did you miss me? How are my little Dupla-dees?" She

said as she petted each small animal of different breeds and ages in turn.

The young boy looked at me. Now he seemed afraid but not of me

but of his aunt.

The woman called to me again as I turned to leave. "Hey, Jare! I

have a secret for ya."

"Yes, what is it?"

She then pressed close to my ear and then belched rather loudly in to

it.

I made a frustrated sound from my throat and then I turned to the

child. He looked at me sadly, desperately.

I was about to disappear.

"Wait!" Cried the child.

"I am terribly sorry, my dear little man but your aunt is not…" I

mocked Kara's own tone towards me and her accent. "Norrr-mall!"

"But what should I do?" The boy was near tears as I turned to see

his aunt in the nest room. She placed a compact disk in to a stereo system

that began to play old television theme songs. She was still giggling.

"Let's play name that show!" She laughed.

I shuttered.

Kara called over the original musical theme to the original

Gillagan's island television series theme music to the little boy. "Hey,

Danny, I just waxed off the hairs of my chin this morning. Do you want the

wax balls I made especially for you?"

The boy shuttered.

"She IS joking, right?" I asked.

The boy shook his head sadly. "No."

"My God, I would think that this would count as some sort of child

abuse. Well, keep calm, young man. You may survive this all, yet. You have

my deepest empathy."

The boy's eyes were watering. "Please don't leave me alone…

here... with… with her! What should I do?" The boy cried to me over the

drone of the television theme music to the original Star Trek television

Series now.

"You deal with it!" I snapped at the child as I glanced over at Kara

who somehow had found a way to dance to the music.

I then disappeared.

Now, if the child had been clever enough to have had wished himself

away to The Underground then I would have gladly taken him with me. Sadly

though he had not made the wish. He had not said the right words. Though he

had my deepest sympathy I was not willing to bother with him at that time

anyway.

From now on I think that I shall be a bit more selective about who I

am willing to take in to The Underground.

Sincerely,

Jareth, The Goblin King

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] *JARETH* 10 (1 of 7)

From:

Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 19:22:46 EST

--------

Hello once again everyone,

I think that you might enjoy this. Here is yet another entrée from

the journal of The Goblin king.

I sort of "borrowed" this from the journal of a close…. Friend if

he doesn't murder me of course.

This one is a trifle bit longer then most of the rest and though this

was one of the last entrées in the book that I stole… I mean "Borrowed',

there are plenty that came before it that I have not yet posted.

Raven

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Entry 247O: (A holiday not to be forgotten)

In the form of the white owl I flew over the City of London England.

The year as it was- was the end of 1997. The whole city seemed to still be

in morning for the death of The Princess, Diana.

The large buildings below me seemed to reach up for the heavens

unable to touch the realm that I stole as my own while in that preferred form

for Earthly transportation.

I felt the icy December wind rushing under my belly. The wind

stirred my feathers though never disturbing them from their setting in my

light owl self.

It was nearing the time of dusk and as the faint, hazy light

dimmed in the graying sky my eyes widened, adjusting rapidly to the darkness.

It appeared that it might snow this night. I felt the chill in the air.

It was crisp and pure, clean and frosty, not at all like a winter in The

Underground.

It always seemed that winters in The Underground were dreary and

the dust layered the land as much as the frost, which was not very much at

all usually anyway.

I flew gracefully, enjoying myself and my freedom, the one thing

that I cherished and would cherish more then any power I could hold in my own

realm and over another.

There are few things that I have ever truly held dear to myself;

the first thing is power and control. My life would be in total chaos if I

did not possess just a little of that. The second is freedom and my reason

and ability to think and act as I see fit. The third thing is the ability to

love and care for another, something, which I did seldom at all but I, knew

and know that I am fully capable of doing. The fourth is the power to

create, my magick and natural talents granted me this with music, song, and

my enchantments. And the fifth thing I cherished is humanity, that enjoyable

and unpredictable race of sometimes… quite often foolish beings that never

cease to amaze or entrance me. I would watch with awe in wonder as again and

again they would destroy or change my conceptions of what I had thought them

out to be once I had conceived of a belief that I knew totally that they

were. They would shatter my ideas about their world again and again and then

rebuild it in to something far more interesting then I had first thought it

out to be.

It was fantastic to watch that ever-changing society and those

lovely individuals who would break the prefabricated conformist sentiments

that I had seen arise with a fear of change.

It was indeed a shame that for one thousand, two hundred and eleven

years I had not been a part of that world. It had always been hard for me to

be an outsider; though being the unquestioned ruler of my own realm had

filled the void with shallow materialism for quite some time. The only thing

that had ever calmed the flame of hunger in me for these people and their

world that I had no control in was that precious girl, Sarah Williams whom

had solved my intricate Labyrinth. I had wished again and again that she had

accepted my offer. I think that I might have actually been contented then.

It was hard for me to tolerate my own restlessness.

I flew. Flying as the white owl was an escape for me. It was

freedom. It was a freedom from everything. It was a freedom from my

responsibilities. It was a freedom from my own existence. It was a freedom

from everything that I had ever done and would regret though would never

admit out loud.

I loved the feeling of the cool, clean, icy breeze under me. I

watched from my lonely position in the skies, over seeing the human world as

if it were my own. What a lie that was! But even I have the right to

pretend, to imagine... to try to… dream. The day was fading fast from the

sky. Dusk had come and night was settling a shadowy blanket over all.

As the night set in and the darkness deepened- adding depth to the

faintest shadows I felt a torture, a longing, a desire. The wounds, the

emotional scars left by the girl Sarah Williams remained unhealed or the

scars had been reopened somehow. I was aching inside, and flying, as the owl

was my only chance. It was my freedom, my escape. It was rather like a drug,

or one of my peaches. It helped me to at least for a time forget everything,

though it's effects never did really last long enough. I was flying as the

wise, and white owl more often then I usually would of late.

. I had to let it all go. I had to drop my regrets and broken

promises that I had had made to myself. I had promised that girl, Sarah,

that I would have shown her- her dreams. I had made the promise in the hopes

that she would grant me mine for once, my lost dreams of what I had taken for

granted and given up in my HUMAN, mortal youth. But that had been before my

birthright had turned it all, my life, my world upside down. I had not been

given a choice in being made the ruler of those... those wretched THINGS!

But I had to let that all go. As the owl I was free. I was happy.

I was not Jareth, The Goblin King. I was simply the white barn owl flying

over humanity, never touching it, understanding it somewhat and yet not

caring. Detachment! Again, a lie! No one can ever truly be detached

because emotions are only repressed, and they can burst out like a dam

flooding at any given time. And you can try to deny others but no one; not

even myself can deny my own emotions.

Well, I had spread my wings, and for hours I was souring, never

really tiring. I had taken flight. I did not wish to land.

The past was gone. I had to look for the future. If I lived in the

past I would not have today or tomorrow, just yesterday- a dead thing.

I could still be free. I prayed that time would set me free- free

from everything. I was not fit to rule the goblins. I am willing to admit

that now. I had a human mind, a HUMAN mind, an immortal form yes, but still

a HUMAN mind! …And with that, human needs and desires. I was empty inside.

There was darkness within me. I was… lonely.

There was some sort of light trapped inside my own inner darkness

that no one could see, an ability to love.

I flew higher and higher, trying to let go of everything but the

universe spreading out before me as the thick, polluted, damp London air

thinned around me.

I was at least for the moment free. I could forget it all. I flew

higher then the mountains, reaching for the moon and the stars beyond the

heavy clouds. I flew where the wind was strong and the air was weak, if that

can be described somehow I was free to fly tonight.

I looked down once more at the city below me; still able to see and

hear it perfectly with the owl's heightened senses.

I loved the stirring of the brown, dead leaves that crunched under

the feet of those, at least six and a half yards under me who passed by along

the busy, crowded streets. They were hustling and bustling, shopping and

cheering at the simple joys of the holiday season, making merriment in the

bitter weather. Ah, a remarkable and perseverant race, humanity. Sarah had

changed my ideas about the stamina of the human spirit. In her solving my

nearly impossible Labyrinth she had changed my ideas completely. She had

proven to me how perseverant the human nature can be and how that nature can

in fact sacrifice, evolve, change, and suffer for others. She had forsaken

faulted dreams and my shallow promises all for the sake of child whom she

thinks is her half brother and though I did hate to admit it and would never,

in fact admit it out loud. I know that she had made the right choice in that

matter. She had done what she had to do to move on in her life. For her to

mature she had to forsake what I stood for, for her. I was her darkness as

she was my light.

I held as the owl the freedom from being an immortal living among

imbecilic goblins. I was an immortal, true enough but I still held a human

mind filled with human desires and at one time, once upon a time a long, long

time ago it had even been filled with my own dreams. Ah, the dreams of youth

are the regrets of maturity. But how does one know when he is mature enough

when he will live indefinitely with the same form as humans come and go, age

and die before him? And as he watches a world that is not his own from his

own shabby little world that hardly anyone has penetrated or understood?

God, how I longed for that girl, Sarah William's, the dreamer who had

ventured in to my world and in to my Labyrinth in to that brilliant adventure

to solve my puzzles and answer my riddles. And in the strangest and simplest

ways understand me and mirror my own nature had I still remained as a mortal

boy, once upon a time. It had been eleven years and yet I still thought of

her sometimes… often… constantly…

A few hours, just a few hours for me to be away from The Underground,

that was all that I had wanted. A few hours, was what all that I had wanted,

just a few hours away from The Underground.

It was The Winter Solstice after all, the night of pure magick. All

I wanted was this short little amount of time, free and away from everyone

and every thing that I was used to. It's an irony as to what I would nearly

get in that desire.

I was happy and as the curse of my own existence said, this would not

last for very long. Sure enough my moment of bliss passed rapidly by.

I fell. I was tumbling from the sky like Icarus with his melted wax

wings after souring too close to the noon day sun. I was falling, falling

fast. I felt myself plummeting. I flapped my wings rapidly, trying to gain

height, my altitude decreasing with every split moment.

It was not working. It felt as if I were being pulled down to

Earth. It was as if a heavy weight had swallowed my fragile, vulnerable owl

form. I would not die, surely as I fell to Earth but damn it all, that crash

would hurt like Hell. Oh, what ever this was, this was a bitch!

I fell. That had never happened before. Never once had that ever

happened to me as the white owl. I had never, ever fallen from mid-flight.

I felt an extremely heavy weight and I tumbled from the sky.

I landed hard to the ground. It came with a sickening thud. The

tiny, light bones of the owl were crushed. I cried out in pain but it was a

silent wail. It was but a faint screech from the bowels of the helpless,

broken owl. I saw a flash of white light that turned red against my

momentarily blinded eyes, the physical manifestation of my shock and pain. I

was paralyzed. I was slipping, falling in to myself. Waves of darkness swept

in around me. I think that my neck was broken. I felt as if I were floating

in weightlessness, in water. I was drowning in myself. I was dizzy. My tiny

owl lungs were unable to breathe. My chest had been crushed on impact. I

felt the ribs piercing, crushed in to the diaphragm as the blood pooled

around me. I dared not move at all.

The curse of immortality is that you can actually live through

something like that and then some.

With the last coherent thought I transformed myself, healing myself in

to the humanoid, goblin king, the immortal, my true self, Jareth.

Still aching, in pain from the crash I lay there under an electric

lamp, gasping for breath. What the Hell had happened to me?

The icy, frosted, damp grass under me did not make up for the hard

Earth that it grew upon. My head was bleeding. I had fallen at least twenty

feet from Heaven. I lay for a moment, thanking all the forces of nature and

beyond that I was an immortal. I was dazed. I could not tell precisely what

had happened to me. I was near London Zoo within the property lines of

Regent's park. There were people near by though no one had seen the white

owl fall or it's sudden transformation, thank God!

As Jareth I was not as light or as vulnerable. My magick, knowing my

true form better healed me quickly. I had a head wound that took a moment

longer then the rest to heal.

I staggered to my feet. My whole body was still quite sore. I was not

in shock. I have never once in my life (not to my knowledge) mortal or

immortal had gone in to a state of shock. I had been shocked but I was not

IN shock. In truth I was frightened. I was a bit shaken up and the thought

of what had happened as the sights of it, myself falling like Icarus to Earth

would fill me with a fear I had never known. It would take me a while to

regain my confidence to take flight as the white barn owl and even then I

think that I would be more cautious for it all and not fly so high as I was

used to.

I was dizzy as I leaned against a tree. My thin, casual clothing

was far too light for the winter of London. The wound on my head had already

healed. The blood had stained the collar of my white shirt however. I

looked around, puzzled. It had been done by magick, my fall. It had to have

been. It simply had to have been caused by magick. But who or what would

have dared throw me from the sky in mid flight, and in front of a large, very

populated mortal city?

Who ever it was had to have been out of his or her mind.

Who would have been that careless or that stupid?

I gasped when I saw him appear before me in a burst of light. I had

not seen him in many years. I had nearly forgotten my station as a noble in

his realm. I bowed. "Your majesty."

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] *JARETH* 10 (2 of 7)

From:

Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 19:24:36 EST

--------

It felt awkward, hearing those worlds pass from MY own lips.

King Oberon's hair hung over his shoulders, the colour of moonbeams.

His skin had a pale, icy blue hue to it. He was a few centimeters taller

then I. He wore a white cloak and the royal robes of the fairy court. He

was the master of all of the fairy race. It was often hard for me to

tolerate that he held authority over me. Of course he had not bothered with

The Underground or me in such a long while that I had grown indifferent to

him and to his race. My race of beings, though the truth of the matter was

that I had been born of a mortal mother. My father had been the shape

shifting sorcerer immortal who had ruled The Underground before me, before… I

had killed him, after learning of my birth right in to the unknown race.

I stood up right then, unsure of myself as I looked in to the eyes

of Oberon. The shades of his eyes changed in waves. They were revealing to

me a spectrum of fonts in the colours, the shades of truth. These were the

secret truths that many cannot stand to look upon without fear and shock

while others might seek to glance at it for but a moment even if it is only

at the hours of their physical death.

Suddenly I was in a large darkened room, a hall. I was in a hall.

Others of this peculiar race of which I had reluctantly, many years ago been

initiated in to surrounded me.

Queen Titania sat high in a throne with her husband Oberon beside her

in his throne made entirely out of gold.

Puck (Robin Goodfellow) hovered in the air along side his master.

His stringy white hair hung carelessly hung over his shoulders. His large,

pointed ears the only thing that made him seem to me like anything but a

human, that and the fact that he was floating there in the air. He wore a

light blue tunic and purple leggings. He sat with his legs crossed as he

hovered in the air, watching me with what looked to be like mild amusement

and casual interest.

I looked around and realized that I stood alone, under a dim lamp

under the light of the fairy court. The fourth race, the spirit race, the

beings beyond human knowledge, my people whom had not contacted me in over

one thousand two hundred and eleven years, surrounded me. This was true for

all of them save for the recurring visits from a select few of this court who

now surrounded me from a distance from their boxed, in-turned, coliseum,

stair case like mounted seats. I stood alone in the center of the room as

they looked on me from seats along the walls of the room with detached eyes

and blank countenances.

"What is the meaning of all of this?" I said as I stepped

forward. I forgot my station completely, not even pretending to allow him to

hold superiority over me. What a dangerous fool I can be some times.

Oberon finally spoke up in a very distinct and forceful voice.

"The court has decided to pass judgment on you, Jareth, king of all the

goblins!"

"Judgment? What have I done that you have decided to intervene

with my existence now? What sort of judgment?" I stared at them all coldly.

"One that is not so very good, or highly regarded, I rather

fear." Said the soft spoken and ever truthful Titania, wife to Oberon and

Queen of that particular race that was thankfully not connected to the biting

fairies that had once reigned in The Underground before my father's father.

The biting fairies were that dreadfully annoying race that I

had Hoggle keep steady the population of through limited breeding and summer

time extermination. In fact when the biting fairies had been the more

dominant race of The Underground, long before my time they had been the ones

to create the city that now was The Goblin City. Often I wondered if these

humanoid flies bit out of spite. I would be contemptuous too had my world be

taken and over run by goblins and I had been helpless to stop it. Oh, wait!

(Sarcasm) That is what had happened when my father had appeared before me in

a burst of blue flames and had said "You are the prince of the Goblins and

you are my son. You will come with me now to our world, The Underground!"

…The last day of my life.

"You have disappointed us, Jareth." Said Oberon who held out an

accusing finger towards me from his high throne on it's large tabernacle

stand.

A crystal orb appeared in front of me and then it expanded so that

it was large enough that the court, the gathering of immortals could see the

images projected in to it.

I stepped back

I pressed myself against the back wall of the room. It was papered

in soft black velvet. As my hands touched the surface of the wall I felt

cold iron wrap around my wrists, pulling me with a jerk. I tried to pull

away but it was too late. I was restrained, shackled by my wrists to the

wall. Chains extended from the oblique, near liquefied places in the wall

where the wrist bands had emerged. Three yards of chain, no more and no less

emerged from oblivion as the wall solidified again. I gasped. I knew that

this was more then a little bit serious that they had bound me here. I could

not free myself. My magick was almost nothing compared to that of the high

rulers of that court. And I could not make myself disappear from the

restraints. In fact all of my power as well as my arms and hands were

restrained. I stood a few feet from the wall, far enough that I was not

pressing against it and close enough that I would not allow myself to feel

the limits of my restraints.

I looked down at the ground. I was humiliated by my helpless and

powerless position.

I looked up again and glared at the king and queen who looked on the

room and myself in particular as was the whole of the crowd with casual

detachment. "What have I done? I demand to know right now! What have I

done?" I cried out.

"You have no right to DEMAND anything!" Said Oberon who

telepathically reminded me of the English translation of my Old Celtic name

'One with flaws and or problems of the genitalia". It was an Old Celtic

word, Jareth, not even really a name, a disorder! I cringed. What had my

cruel bastard of a father been thinking in naming me that? I had nearly

forgotten that my name basically was an old word for "Impotency." Of course

my father had been a cruel, tyrannical, deranged prick.

Oberon spoke up again after insulting me personally. "Behold, the

crimes."

I watched as in the floating crystal orb before images were

projected. I saw my life, little clips of it's worst moments. I saw the

image of my younger self holding the hide's blood stained dagger, the dagger

stained in Hide's blood that would kill my father. I saw my own rage in the

image, the boy I had once been. I watched as the images, on phases of years

performed their terrible dance before my eyes. I saw the life that had been

taken from him, the mortal youth and potential happiness on Earth. I had

been engaged to wed a beautiful, intelligent young girl. Her name had been

Sarah McCowie. Sarah Williams had reminded me so much of that girl, my dear

first love.

I had loved her more then anything. Born and raised in the bosom of

Celtic tribal village in Scotland, my father, or rather the man who had

raised me had been a wealthy traveler from Britannia.

They showed my first crime, the crime of my birth, of being

mortal. They showed that my mother being infected with the seed of an

immortal had not been given the strength to carry the children, myself and my

sister Christine. She had died giving birth.

I watched as my real father had taken my sister without my knowledge

. She would be raised in another realm by fair folk and in inheriting her

magick early would forever be seventeen.

I had only recently learned of her existence.

"You cannot hold me responsible for that!" I cried. "I was

hardly alive!'

The next image came. I was a new born immortal at this point, stolen

from Earth and my bride to The Underground. My bride to be having committed

suicide at the knowledge of what I truly was. I was enraged when my father

who had handed me a peach to forget all of my precious few years on Earth. I

had attempted (to my knowledge, successfully) to murder him.

"He tired to control me! That's not fair." I said. "I could not

let him rule me!"

"And would you murder the heads of this court because of your

anarchic ideals?"

I fell silent.

They showed years of my idle ruling as King of the Goblins. They

showed dozens of women and men all over the world who had wished away

unwanted children, people and pets that I would transform in to goblins or

drive mad, or destroy, or all of the above in time.

I was ashamed. It had not been my choice to have been born a prince

of the goblins. And all those acts had been acts of duty not of choice. The

real shame came with the thoughts on how much I had enjoyed all of that and

more. I had taken great pleasure in doing all of that and then some.

I saw mortal women and some fairies that in the heat of passion I had

impregnated with my seed. Adalia, the fairy princess had my two sons, Jacen

and Adier. A woman on Earth had my eldest daughter Aradia, aged then at

fifteen. Toby was on Earth though no one knew that he was really my own, I

having slept with Sarah William's stepmother in the guise of her father

shortly after Linda Williams (Sarah's real mother) had run off with the man

known as 'Jeremy".

I saw all of my lovers, male and female whom I had felt almost

nothing for but a vague detachment and a casual lust, breaking so many hearts

and perhaps in simply that driving some to the brink of madness.

I saw those who had begged for the chance to solve the Labyrinth on

behalf of those wished away or for their own freedom. And I had enjoyed with

malicious glee their sorrow and desperation, their failures and for many that

fell in to Oubliettes or the hands of some of the more dangerous and

untrustworthy occupants of my great maze… death.

Oberon said nothing about this. There was nothing to say. These were

the acts of The Goblin King. These were acts expected of me, loathed

personally by me in the later after effect when I would lay awake in my

chambers at night unable to sleep saying over and over again and again to

myself "My God! What have I done? What have I done?"

"You were never able to handle your responsibility properly." Said

Oberon. I looked up at him as he spoke. "With great power there also there

comes with it an even greater responsibility. Power corrupts but only the

irresponsible. You are most definitely a far cry from a responsible being,

Jareth. Your Goblin City is in ruins!"

The image of The Goblin City appeared in the orb. "You have not

taken a child in years. You have not done any of your proper duties in

years. It is as if you no longer have a passion for your work as The Goblin

King. ..Not since that girl Sarah Williams had solved your Labyrinth which

brings me to your ultimate act to fall in failure."

The next image to appear in that softly glowing sphere was of Sarah. I

stood in the room before her in the projected scene in the orb. "Sarah, go

back to your room. Play with your toys and your costumes. Forget about the

baby." I had said.

The images changed. They showed Sarah solving my Labyrinth and with

the aid of only but one beast, Ludo, a strange, insane fox like goblin

creature, Sir Dydimous, and the Dwarf who had worked for me and had betrayed

me, Hoggle, defeating my very Goblin City.

"You allowed a mortal girl to solve The Labyrinth!" Said Oberon as if

this news was fresh to his mind still. I had thought that the whole universe

had known of it by now. "And then after she confronts you- you resort to

begging! How truly pathetic, Jareth."

The next image in the crystal orb to appear was my weakened self. I

wore the feathered cloak, the v necked, cream coloured poet's shirt, my cicle

pendent, and the white leggings that horribly had exaggerated my thighs and

my knee caps as well as the white leather boots that ended just below my

knees .

I saw myself hold out the crystal ball to her. "Just fear me- love

me. Do as I say and I will be your slave."

I shut my eyes and trembled a little as I heard her response as if for

the first time. "You have no power over me." It echoed in my mind, those

dreadful words. "You have no power over me. You have no power over me. You

have no power over me!" ..Like a broken, skipping record that just would not

stop, that's what it seemed. This was a nightmare.

I felt my heart as it had been torn, still beating from my chest

with those lines.

I sighed in regret.

"All that to keep a child!" Oberon said with a disgusted expression as

he saw my face, my reaction to seeing all of that again. I know that I must

have looked ill.

"No Not… not just to keep the child." I said simply. "It was

different… Her will was as strong as my own… It was… Different."

"How was it 'different'?"

It was at this point that I saw that Puck had gone. He had left

his master's side. I do not know why this had then caught my attention but

it had. Now where had that little imp run off to?

I sighed, unwilling to have to explain the feelings that I now and

even then had felt for that dear child, Sarah.

"In the murder of your father- the failure to properly govern

your realm- in allowing a MORTAL GIRL to solve The ancient Labyrinth. And

then in allowing her to defeat your Goblin Army the court is now ready to

sentence you for your crimes of which you are most definitely guilty of,

Jareth. This is unless of course someone is willing to speak up on your

behalf!"

I had nothing left to say. I knew that Oberon wanted me to beg for

mercy. I would not give him the satisfaction of such an act. I would never

do such a thing in all my life, no matter the gravity of the given situation.

I was simply far too proud for all of that.

I nodded when I knew for certain that no one would speak for me,

fearing the same, whatever fate was in store for me.

Oberon spoke up again. "Very well then, Jareth, Goblin King, the

court has here by decided-"

"Wait!" Cried a female voice from a distant corner of the room. A

bright light came and went as a door swung open and shut.

A hooded figure emerged from the crowd. A mysterious woman had just

entered the room. It was a mortal woman in the fairy court. This was most

interesting. It was indeed extraordinary.

The court watched her in silence as she proudly, boldly stepped before

King Oberon.

"I will speak for him." She said simply.

"This is ludicrous!" Cried Oberon. "What is the meaning of all of this? Who

brought a HUMAN in to the Court?"

"I did." Said a naisely, nearly gender-less voice. I turned. To my

left stood Puck (Robin Goodfellow) or rather he stood in the air before me,

floating like a specter. "Your honour, I think that you should hear this

woman, this human," He mocked a term from a fantasy book. "this 'Daughter

of Eve' out. I promise that there is a good reason for this particular

mortal to be here." Puck then leaned over and whispered in my ear. "You

really owe me for this one, Jareth."

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] *JARETH* 10 (3 of 7)

From:

Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 19:26:04 EST

--------

I looked on with wonder and fascination at the woman. Her face

was still hidden from me. She stood tall and wore a long, brown riding cloak

with the hood down over her face. She was but a vague silhouette to me.

"Very well then. Who are you?" Asked Oberon to the human woman.

She pulled down the hood and the crowd all gasped at once it

seemed. An eerie chill ran down my spine.

I wished to step up to her but as I moved forward the shackles

forced me to ricochet backward. I stood still, hating the restraints,

feeling more then fear and embarrassment at the moment.

There were murmurs and gasps from the court.

Her brown hair, now hung in waves over her shoulders. Her face still

had the innocent child's expression that I remembered and had loved so

dearly. Her eyes were wide and beautiful. Little almonds, they were.

She glanced at me once with a faint smile and then back up at Oberon.

"I am Sarah Williams!" She said boldly. It was strange, seeing her

but then having actually heard her pronounce that indeed it was her was

something else all together.

She then turned again to me. "Hello, Jareth."

I smiled slightly despite the shackled wrists and the dire, grave

situation that I was in. "Hello, Sarah. Well, this indeed is definitely an

unlikely event. I had hardly expected anything like this."

"Jareth, you were the one who had taught me that this is where

everything seems possible and nothing is what it seems."

I grinned and nodded. "True enough, love. True enough."

She turned again to face Oberon, Titania and the gathering. "I will

speak for him."

She glanced at the orb that still hovered in the air in front of me. It was

now clear of the images of the past as if she knew how to use it's power and

somehow I think that she did.

"Ladies, gentlemen… whatever you are… true enough that I did solve

Jareth's Labyrinth but as he can tell you I am not quite the average woman.

She concentrated, and thought of things the way she had seen them

and right from here mind the images came in to the orb.

In the orb appeared the image of Sarah solving the riddle of the

first obstacle of the one door guard telling the truth and the other always

lying. Then appeared the image of her out running The cleaners and even

dawdling at one point to help the treacherous dwarf, Hoggle to his feet as he

stumbled along that under- Underground passage.

The images progressed. They danced by, showing the whole story

like an old slide still projection camera. They were showing how even after

eating one of the peaches she had not fallen in to my seduction. It showed

how her friend, the idiotic beast, Ludo had the ability to call on the rocks,

sending my goblins running in a panic for fear that they would be crushed,

run down by rolling boulders.

It then showed her making that incredibly, daring leap in The

Escher room. And her final defiance of me, to save Toby from the fate that

though I would not have given him as heir to my throne had promised to

goblinize the child.

The crystal orb went blank.

"Well," Said Oberon as he rubbed his chin. "perhaps you were worthy

to have solved The Labyrinth. In three thousand years no one had done that

before."

I smiled. Perhaps Sarah would win out again only this time for me

and not against me.

"But," Said Oberon "that still leaves that you had murdered your

father and that you have not properly governed The Underground." He said to

me.

Sarah did not know how to respond to this. My mind was screaming.

'Damn it, Jareth, Defend yourself!' But I said nothing.

Then another specter appeared in the room in a burst of bright

light. Even I could hear his power, greater perhaps then all of the court,

save for Oberon himself. It hummed in the air like electricity.

Sarah gasped, not yet used to the sudden appearance and

disappearance of immortal beings. The Greek God Apollo stood in front of me

now. He was not, nor would he ever be, I think, a member of this race but a

cousin of sorts, holding a high station as being a son of Zeus.

"Your highness, perhaps I can explain why Jareth had done what he

had done to his father." Said my old acquaintance, the God of light, poetry,

art and dance.

I blinked, surprised that he was actually coming to my aid. He read my

mind and smiled at me. "I still owe you for what you had done for me back in

'85" (See Journal Entrée 45 B (All hallows eve) )

In the orb appeared myself as a young man, plotting to run off with

my lover. It then showed my father appearing before us. He whisked me off

to The Underground to make of me his prince.

Then the image changed to the dear girl that I had loved back in

my youth in the year of 886 AD. I had just made her like myself to be my

bride, my princess. She stood in the throne room. I had just made of her an

immortal. I cringed when I saw this image. She learned that some of the

goblins had actually been born human. She had killed herself, her immortal

blood staining in my hands- my reason for wearing the gloves. Of course no

human could see this blood, but I could and so could other immortals if I

allowed them to.

Apollo spoke up as an image of a peach appeared. "Your highness,

Jareth was quite heart broken but Grall, his father had wished to take away

from him his memories of all of his mortal years and every one of his

memories of the girl that was so important to him."

"But he could have gone mad with grief." said a voice from the crowd

that I think might have been an Elven princess.

"True enough." Said Apollo. "But it was his right to choose to forget

or not. Even has king of The Goblins, Grall had no right to tamper with

that. And as I recall it, Grall was a tyrannical arse anyway. He was more

careless with his realm then Jareth was. Jareth was born in the mortal world

and his father was no example. He had no idea how to rule as a Goblin prince

let alone to be thrown on to the position of Goblin King. He simply was not

prepared for it. He did the best that he could- considering that he had no

formal training for it. I am surprised that he had not yet lost his sanity

in all of it."

"That's in question." Said Puck sarcastically. He could not resist

the opportunity to make a wise crack remark.

"Well," Said Oberon. "that's good enough but that still does not

make up for the poor ruling in the past of The Underground and the potential

fall of the realm in the future do to this one's incompetence... I mean 'lack

of formal training.' Perhaps if he had assistance but-"

"Assistance!" Sarah spoke up again as Apollo and Puck stood back

against the far wall along side of me.

"What if… what if he had a partner to rule at his side…" She

looked at me with a strange expression. I looked deep in to her eyes,

slipping from myself as she did the same.

"You mean like a Queen?" asked Titania patiently as she pulled us,

Sarah and I, with her words back to that reality.

I shook my head. Sarah would never… I looked up at her….

Would she?

:"Well," Said Oberon, with a raised eye brow "That would change

things. With two to learn from and share the responsibilities the kingdom

might to be so bad off."

I looked at Sarah.

"But," Said Oberon "You two would have to truly be soul mates, equal but

opposite halves. I would need proof that you two can remain as a couple

forever."

"Do you love him, Sarah William?" Asked Titania for her husband.

Sarah stepped over to me and took my right hand. I gripped hers

gently. She tried to ignore the chains. I looked in to her eyes and she

looked in to mine. She whispered. "I made a mistake. You do hold power over

me, the power of my heart. I… I love you Jareth."

"Sarah," I said quietly as I turned inward so I could raise my

other hand as best I could, considering the shackles and brushed her cheek

with my gloved finger tips. "don't you understand how you have turned my

world, you precious thing. You have held power over me from the very

beginning. Everything- everything that I had done was for you. I move the

stars for no one. I tried so very hard to live up to your expectations on

what you thought I should be that in the process, in the image of being for

your that antagonist that I did not really wish to be I had lost myself

completely. I had reordered time. I had turned the world upside down and I

had done it all for you. Everything that you had wanted I had done and

anything that you would want I would have and could have granted. And I would

grant you anything. There is nothing that I would deny you."

"But do you love me, Jareth?" She asked. "Do you really love me?"

"Yes," said King Oberon "do you love her?"

That seemed the most foolish question I had ever heard. Hadn't they

paid attention to a single word I had just said.

"Oh, yes, of course I do. I love you more then anything in the

universe because YOU hold power over me, something that no mortal had ever

willfully accomplished from me. Your will is as strong as my own. You made

it so far. In traveling through my Labyrinth you had changed. I had

changed. We both had changed. And I loved you. And I love you now."

Sarah kissed me right then and there, deeply and passionately. A

passionate rush of electricity passed through us as her soft lips brushed

mine. She pulled away and held tight to my hand.

Oberon raised his hand in the air and made a wide waving gesture. I was

free from restraints that dissolved in to a faint, glittering dust that I

brushed off my wrists.

I held Sarah in my arms. I was refusing to let her go. I was

praying that this was not just a dream. I was praying that I had not just

hit my head too hard when I fell to the ground in my owl form. I hoped that

I was not still just laying unconscious in London England on Earth. I hoped

that this all would not end as just a dream like a bad plot to a television

show where everything would fall back in a casual routine as the extreme

dream plot would prove to be false. I do so hated those things in plays,

books, and movies and in television shows.

Oberon spoke again. "I here by pronounce you man and wife."

I was ecstatic.

"But... " Said Oberon. "I will need proof that the two of your can

survive as a couple. I know that Sarah can tolerate The Underground." He

then glanced a the now twenty six year old Sarah Williams. "You must be a

saint, my dear."

Sarah blushed faintly.

"I will need to see if like you, Jareth can survive in your world. I

wish to see if you two truly are equals."

Puck spoke up now. "But Sir, I put Jareth to such a test only a short

while ago." (See Journal Entrée 76540-3: (The tricks of the trade) )

"Don't you think that I know this already?" asked Oberon. "I wish

to see if he can survive on Earth as a mortal until the day after Christmas

with his new wife and still wish to be with her when it is all over or her

with him.

A strange burst of light hit me. I cried out once, only startled by

it more then anything. My heart raced, pounded in my chest. I felt weak. I

fell to my knees.

Sarah looped her arm around my own to help me to my feet. "Jareth,

are you all right?"

"Yes, I… I think so."

I was mortal. A strange heavy, woozy uneasiness was within me.

A glowing vortex appeared before us.

Oberon spoke up. "This will lead you to Earth. If you can survive

on Earth until the day after Christmas and still wish to remain husband and

wife then at the stroke of Midnight December twenty sixth you will both be

transported to The Underground. Jareth, you will be restored to your true

immortal state and Sarah will be too made immortal as well as granted half

your powers and authority in The Underground."

I felt slightly cheated at this though I nodded. I would have willingly

offered her the same but being told of what I would have to give her without

my own will involved made me a little bit apprehensive about all of it.

I nodded.

"If you two cannot do this then on December twenty sixth this case will

be reopened for re-evaluation. Is this understood?"

Sarah and I both nodded.

"Be on your way then." Titania said. "And good luck, the both of

you.

Though for the time I was mortal I felt the presence of Puck

watching us, spying for his master as Sarah and I leapt in to the vortex and

re-emerged on Earth.

Though I had left Earth shortly after sun set on the twenty-first of

December, it was noon here. It was Monday the twenty-second of December,

1997.

Sarah looked around the rolling green fields. A light mist was in the

air.

"Where are we?" She asked.

I felt a weakness in the pit of my stomach. I was still in the blood

stained shirt from my fall as the owl. I was hungry and my legs felt heavy

and awkward.

"I know where we are." I said.

"Where then?"

"Just outside of Hastings."

"Hastings?"

"Hastings England."

Sarah's eyes went wide. "England?!?"

"Yes, apparently so." I said. I had nearly forgotten that she was

just a young American girl. She had never been to England before. But then

again, how could I forget that with her obvious, American accent?

"We can't be in Europe!" She cried.

"Why not?" I said.

"I promised my father, Stepmother and Toby that I would be home

for Christmas. What am I going to tell them?"

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] JARETH 10 (4 of 7) half of 4

From:

Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 21:15:36 EST

--------

"News flash, darling. You are also now my wife. If you intend to be

totally honest with them I should think that we have a few more things to

worry about then being a bit late for Christmas supper!"

"Jareth, I have to tell them something. I can't just leave them

without a word. And it's important to me that I spend Christmas with them."

"I'd hate to burst your bubble, ducky but we don't exactly even

have passports with us. We would never get through customs at the air port.

And I do not have any currency with me."

"That's not fair!"

I was tempted to say something to the like of "You say that so

often, I wonder what your basis for comparison is." But I did not. It was

becoming a boring cliché and fast.

She looked at me as if she had read my mind. "Don't even say it,

Jareth. Don't even say it!"

She then squatted down and placed her elbows on her knees and rested

her head on her hands.

"What? I was not going to say anything."

"No. But I know you and I know you were thinking it."

"All right. Well, we are going to need a place to stay. There had

got to be an inn or room for rent around here somewhere."

"Why don't you just use your balls and make passports and money

appear so we can catch a flight out of here."

"Darling, in case you have not noticed, I am HUMAN at the moment!"

"Oh, sorry, I forgot. You didn't have to scream at me." She

pouted.

Married fifteen minutes and we were already quarreling. If we did

survive the next four days I could picture the rest of eternity with this

girl as being Hell.

I brushed some loose blond hairs out of my face. I wished that I

had a mirror. I felt filthy as a mortal and with a shirt stained in still

sticky, cooling blood I wanted to bathe. There was only a little bit on dried

blood on my forehead. My stomach was empty. It felt as if there were a

hallow void inside of me. I was hungry.

I leaned up against a large old oak tree. "I don't suppose that you

would have any money with you?" I said to Sarah.

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] *JARETH 10 (4 of 7) other of 4

From:

Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 21:17:18 EST

--------

"hmm?" Then it seemed that the thought had suddenly struck her. "Oh."

She reached in to her pockets. "I don't usually carry much money with me."

She pulled out a brown wallet. "Just this." She held out about six hundred

dollar bills.

I blinked. "Where did you get that from?"

"Jareth, I am an adult now."

"Well, unfortunately I don't know where we could have that

transferred in to pounds and even then, two hundred pounds is not a lot to

work with in this day and age."

"Oh." She looked crest fallen. Then I noticed something light

reflective, something made out of plastic in her wallet.

"What is that?"

"Oh? What?"

"That!"

I tore the wallet from her hands and removed the credit card. I

smiled when I realized that it was one, though originated from the USA would

be accepted almost anywhere on the planet.

"Oh. That's my credit card. I only use it for emergencies though."

She reached to take it away from me.

I pulled back with the plastic card raised above my head, as if I were

trying to make a game of tormenting her with it. I was not. This was not

some mere game of keep away.

"You are getting half of EVERYTHING I own. I think that I have the

right to this."

"But that's not fair." She whined.

"Oh, bitch all you would like! It is perfectly fair. And

anyway- darling, I think that this does indeed count as an emergency. It's

the middle of winter. You most certainly cannot get home. You are now my

wife. And I am human for a time and I am... famished."

"But we have to be careful, Jareth. There's not limit on that one.

I don't want my credit record being tarnished."

I laughed. "You no longer need a credit record. You ARE The Goblin

Queen or at least you will be in about ninety-six hours. You will have to

let go of these mortal trappings."

She frowned. "I hadn't thought about that."

I placed down the card and handed it back to her. "Here. We will be

needing it very shortly. I just remembered that I have something we can

use."

A moment of regret hit me, kicked me hard in the bum actually. I

remembered when I had been stolen away from the human world. It is a

difficult thing to have to adapt. I had never wanted to let go.

Tears were welling in Sarah's eyes. "My life… My career… My family…

Oh, Jareth. I hadn't thought things through at all."

I took her in my arms gently. "It will be all right. You don't

have to go back with me. We can work this out. I can face that pompous, over

bearing Oberon myself when this is all over."

"No," she shook her head. "That's just it. I want to go with you.

I want to be with you more then anything, forever and ever and ever… I just

wasn't prepared for it. That's all. I mean- it's all so over whelming. How

can I be The Goblin Queen?"

I smiled and wiped her tear that hung on her cheek with my hand. "You

will learn. And you can still visit with your family as you wish. But you

cannot tell them the truth. They will not, I don't think, be able to handle

it quite so well. What exactly would you tell them anyway? 'Oh, hello, I

can't stay for quite so long. Years ago I had wished that Toby be taken and

so The Goblin King kidnapped him. I solved his Labyrinth and defied him for

my half brother. Oh, and now I'm married to him though I am still not so

sure how it happened and neither does he. I'm off for the surreal alternate

reality- The Underground now. Good bye.'"

She giggled slightly having heard me mock her accent and tone.

"I suppose it is a little odd."

"A little! Love, if this were any stranger… I do not think this can

get any stranger then it already is."

We walked until we came to a fairly populated town. We went in to the

local bank, which fortunately had connections to The Bank of London . I

withdrew three hundred pounds out of an account I had built there under the

name of Jeremy Smith. Jeremy Smith's photograph identification I had carried

with me from the start of this little adventure, as I had before taking on

the form of the owl had walked the streets of London in the disguise a mortal

man.

As we walked from the Bank and climbed in to the taxi-cab Sarah asked

me "Why would YOU need a bank savings account?"

I smiled. "Do you really think that I spend every waking moment in

The Underground? Of course not. I like Earth too much to hide from it

forever. And besides- there are times where I know that I would be caught if

I used my magick too often. So I made the currency… literally of course and

the photo- identification some time ago and opened my own savings account."

She looked at me blankly.

"I cannot possibly use my magick in a busy city like that. I could be

noticed. And anyway, there are video cameras on almost every street corner

now. I have to be very careful when on Earth, lest I might end up somehow

trapped in a laboratory being dissected by government agents."

We took the taxi-cab to the train station. We waited about fourty

five minutes for the next train. I bought a small bag of potato crisps out of

the candy vending machine near the waiting platform.

Sarah stared at me as I ate.

Again came an awkward moment that I felt I had done something to upset

her preconceived ideals on who and what I was.

"What is it?"

"It's nothing… I just never thought I would see you.. eat… That's

all."

"Sarah, I'm human for the next three and a half days. You had better

grow used to it. And besides- I have been human nearly five hours now and my

stomach is empty."

"Fine. Well, I'm your wife now. At least let me have some, you

selfish pig!"

I handed her the small bag. "You are beginning to act a bit too much

like me and…"

"And?"

"And I'm beginning to hate myself." I took her hand and we climbed on to the

train that was just then pulling in to the station.

We made several stops, once at Hereford.

It was ten PM when we reached London. We found ourselves in

Victoria Station in what I would consider to the be tourist trap zone of

London. Sarah was groggy as we made our way to a place where there were

rooms to rent only about five kilometers from the Thames River.

There was an empty, unfurnished room for rent, a poorer,

dilapidated place in

an over crowded building. And though the room we took was on the ninth floor

there was no elevator lift to take us up to the right level. We had to take

the stairs.

The land lady demanded two weeks worth of the rent in advance and

that I sign a lease stating that I would stay at least six month. Ha, if

only she knew that I intended to be gone before six days.

The room was drafty. An old fire place stood along the far wall and a

half bath was connected to the kitchen, which really was a bit of tiled

floor, a refrigerator and an oven/ cooking stove

"We're going to stay HERE?" Said Sarah as she saw the shabby

little, one roomed apartment.

"Would you rather we stayed at a proper Hotel and get a suite with

that credit card of yours?"

"It's a little late now. Let's go tomorrow. We can spend the night

here." She said in a slightly disgusted and weary voice.

"Fine then." I shrugged.

For that whole day I had people stare with fear and confusion at the

blood on my shirt and forehead and had a few pedestrians out right ask Sarah

"Is he all right?"

I quickly turned on the, faucet, tap sink water and took off my

shirt. I placed it in the water and watched as some of the excess blood ran

off and in to the drain. It did little help. Even with soap I doubt the stain

would have come out.

"It looks like we will have to do a bit of clothing shopping

tomorrow." I said as I wrung out the blood stained shirt and hung it over

the stove to dry.

Sarah stared at me blankly. Then it occurred to me that I was

half naked in front of her for the first time.

She stared at my thin chest and somewhat muscle-less arms. She seemed

fascinated at my tight, fairly thin, pressed, hairless, stomach.

:"What is it?"

She shook her head and tried to look away from me. She seemed

embarrassed.

"Nothing…"

"Sarah. You have no need to be this way. You're my wife now."

"Right..." She seemed distracted. "I keep forgetting..."

Obviously she was not yet ready to consummate our marriage.

I looked at the empty fire place. The tiny over head lamp (which

was really just a light bulb on a frayed electrical cord string) was not

enough and the room was chilly with the December air. "Perhaps we should put

on there fire." I said as I walked over to the place to get it started.

Why was this so awkward? She was my wife for God's sake!

I managed to get a small fire burning in the place. Sarah stood

back, away from me.

I turned and looked at Sarah, and as if I could still read her

thoughts, which I actually could not and I spoke up. "We don't have to…"

She only nodded. She was trembling.

"Come sit by the fire with me." I said to her.

Cautiously she made her way beside me and sat down next to me.

For a moment we just sat there and looked at the flames and heard

the crackling roar of the fire.

Finally I spoke up. "Eleven years."

She looked up at me. "Hmm?"

"Eleven years. That's how long ago it was. Surely you remember?"

"Of course I remember."

"Would you care to tell me what has happened to you since then?"

"Well," She took a deep breath. "when I was sixteen I had been

accepted as a member of The International library of poetry. My poems

published really only being about you, The Labyrinth and what I had learned

on my journey. I graduated school at home with a general education diploma

when I was nineteen. Thanks to you I could not walk the halls of my public

high school without the feeling that I was in some portion of The Labyrinth.

It became nerve racking. Every time I looked in to a mirror I thought I saw

your face looking back at me. It was as if you were always there with me. I

took a writing course at the community collage. I did a little traveling all

over The states. I was working for a book store in Shaffsbury Vermont when

Puck appeared to me and told me about your situation . That's about it."

"I thought you had wanted to be an actress like your mother?"

"Oh, I act from time to time for a small theatrical group- nothing

serious though."

"My, you have grown up then, haven't you?" I said as I gently

wrapped an arm around her. She recoiled slightly at my touch as if she were

not used to affection. She then relaxed in my arms.

"Not quite."

"Oh?"

She sighed. "I'm twenty-six and I've never… I've never…"

"Been with anyone?"

She nodded.

That had been totally unexpected. A beautiful, adult woman, a

twenty-six year old and still a virgin who had lived on Earth in that time?

It seemed impossible to me. A part of me wanted to take advantage of this,

another part of me felt pity and remorse at the thought of what I desperately

wanted to do about that.

I leaned close to her and I looked in to her eyes. I kissed her

gently. Pulled away. I saw the fear in her eyes. I knew she was not ready.

"I'm sorry." I said simply as I let her go.

"No. It was… fine."

I cleared my throat. I climbed to my feet and took a step back.

"I need to take a bath…" I Paused thinking to myself that I had best make

it a cool one.

She nodded.

I bathed in icy water to cool my lusts and passions. She was not

ready. She was my wife but she was not yet ready for it. I had to be patient

for her.

When I came out of the bath, still quite wet for we had no towels and

practically numb with chill I saw that she had fallen asleep. The cloak she

had worn to the court house lay folded under her head. She was using it as a

pillow as she lay sleeping on the floor near the still burning, fire.

Quietly I slipped down beside her and fell asleep. I wrapped my arm

around her and held her close to me. I did nothing else. I shut my eyes a

lay on that hard wood floor next to her, using her body heat for warmth,

though not the warmth I desired.

The next day Sarah was in an extremely chipper mood. After I had

bought some hair care products, a new shirt and a raiser blade and some soap

and properly freshened up we had buttered rolls and coffee at a café for

breakfast.

She had never been outside of The states before. This was her first

trip to London. She wanted to see everything before I had us checked in to a

hotel later that evening.

Sarah, having accepted sometime in her night's dreaming that her mortal life

now meant almost nothing was more then willing to use her credit card for

nearly every expense and with the money I had left for casual things where

charge cards were not accepted.

Her new found enthusiasm made me laugh. She wanted to see and do

everything. She wanted that we would ride on a double-decker bus. She

wanted to act as if she were a tourist visiting. I yielded. We had to ride

on the second story. She thought it gave a better view of the sights we

passed.

The streets were filled with the hustle and bustle of busy, last minute

holiday shoppers. It was December twenty third.

I decided that it would only be proper that I bought her and myself

proper wedding rings since indeed we were husband and wife now. That would

be my holiday present for her, though the solstice was already two days late.

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] *JARETH* 10 (5 of 7)

From:

Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 21:12:22 EST

--------

As Sarah dragged me along to all the tourist sights I stopped now and

again at simple shops to see if I might find what I wanted and needed. I

brought hair care supplies and several new shirts of vintage style, a

preferred fashion for me, of the near gothic styles. I also bought a trench

coat for myself and an imitation fur coat for Sarah.

I could not very well travel all over London in some blood stained,

still damp rag or a cheep, weather forbidding white shirt now could I?

I had to literally pull her from Saint Paul's Cathedral where she stood

in awe with her tiny disposable camera for far too long.

The Old Baily court also for some odd reason or another caught her

fancy. The Tower of London, Big Ben and the tours of the outer portions of

Buckingham Palace did not thrill her as much as it did many other tourists.

She wanted to ride the London underground rail ways. I told her not

unless she was willing to carry a weapon for self defense.

Trying desperately hard to avoid the east end or south London I took

her to many of the upper class shoppes and stores that were in little strips

of shopping centers.

While Sarah had taken it upon herself to go off by herself to

explore a quaint little sweet shoppe I found what I wanted.

A small corner store, a Jewelry store with many antique estate

pieces on sale was open.

A simple ring was fine for me, a band of 14 Karat gold. But for

Sarah.. I had to find something special for her. I found Sarah's among some

old estate pieces. It was an Irish claughter ring. It's band was of

fourteen Karat gold. I always thought that silver was prettier on the fairer

sex but I hadn't the time to have one specially made up. I only hoped that

this little beauty of a piece was her size. I recognized the ancient symbol.

The hands at the base of the golden band, that band meaning eternity, the

hands meaning friendship that connected at a heart, the heart meaning love.

The heard was made entirely out of a cut ruby, and the crown on top of the

ruby heart meant loyalty. It was perfect. It was an old ring. It was an

estate piece, quite expensive but worth the money that I would never pay

anyway.

I had it placed in a velvet box and placed this in to the pocket of

the winter jacket I had bought before Sarah's obsessive touristing. The

trench coat that I wore was a necessity. It had begun to snow in the night

and the air was chilly. Being mortal for this time definitely had it's

pratfalls.

The sun set rather early that day, as it always did this time of

year in London. Three times while walking along the busy streets I had to

pull Sarah back on to the walk way. She forgot again and again that traffic

moves forward on the left side of the street in The UK. She nearly got

herself run down by motorists three times.

Finally as it grew late and my feet were blistering and sore from

walking with my new bride who seemed drunk on excitement and pleasure I got

us in to another taxi-cab.

As I had thought we should have done the night before we found a

fairly good hotel and I requested a suite.

The rooms of the suite were quite large. It was well furnished and

properly heated. It was nothing at all like that drafty slum near the east

end where we had spent the night before.

There was one large bed. A crystal chandelier hung in the center of

the main room of the suite apartment.

"Well considering all and all, this wasn't all that bad, now, was it?"

I asked as we saw and ate our supper in private on our bed as a rerun of the

1980's improvised comedy show "Who's line is it anyway" played on the large

screened television set.

I had ordered eggplant paragon. Sarah was picking at her salad.

I placed down my plate and fork and grabbed up the remote control to

the television. I shut off the droning, out dated comedy and looked at her

as I placed it on the stand next to the bed.

I knew that she was thinking about the holiday and of not being with

her family. She had used this day like some sort of dream, a brilliant

adventure but now it was setting in to her that she could not be with her

father on Christmas day, which seemed dreadfully important to her.

I picked up the white curly cord phone from off of the unused book

shelf. "Why don't you call them?" I looked at the clock. It was nearing

eleven thirty. That meant that it was only about four AM in The USA.

She knew that I meant her family back at her home. "And what would

I say to them?"

"You will have to tell them something sooner or later. I suppose it

would be better then just disappearing."

Getting a connection outside of the continent was a hassle as

from what I could tell as I sat and patiently watched on our bed with my legs

crossed.

Sarah's voice cracked with tension as she finally got a break

through. Again I wished that I still had immortal ears or the ability to see

in to her mind if I chose. But then again I had always thought of telepathy

as being rather rude and invasive if it was done without the other party's

permission when being done on a one on one basis.

"Hello, dad." She said. "No. I'm afraid I don't know what time it

is. I'm… in a different time zone. Listen. I'm afraid that I can't make

it for Christmas."

There came a pause. It seemed that this was incredibly difficult

for her.

"Yes. I know I promised. But I can't make it. It's a little

complicated. I can't explain it all now but I promise that I will explain..."

Another pause followed.

"I'm sorry. Yes. I know. I love you too." She seemed forlorn,

melancholy. "Merry Christmas."

She then hung up the phone.

"He seemed to take it… pretty well…." She then began to cry

hysterically. She rushed in to my arms. Finally, it seemed that she was

trusting me.

"It will be all right. You can see him the day after. No harm

done." I said as I held her.

She cried I little more. "I suppose."

We ordered a bottle of champagne. I thought that the alcohol might

calm her nerves somewhat. We drank a little. The bottle was about half full

by One AM.

For a moment we stood at the foot of the bed in silence after we

both had decided that we had a enough to drink. "Thank you." She said.

"For what? I haven't done anything." I said as I placed down my

crystal wine glass.

"For just being there. For showing me this side to you that I did not

know you had. For being Jareth, not The Goblin King."

I smiled. "I was never anything but myself until you had needed

an antagonist to make of yourself a heroine."

"I know. I know. You were exhausted from trying to live up to my

expectations of you. You were being generous"

"No. I was being as Hedgewart so elegantly put it 'That Rat who calls

himself Jareth'" I was mildly intoxicated to have had said that.

She laughed. "I think I like rats then."

I smiled and raised an eye brow. "Oh, do you?"

She was partially drunk as she stumbled in to my arms.

She kissed me deeply and then she asked that I take her.

That was when we finally consummated our marriage.

Hours of heated intimate passion passed. It was the most wondrous

experience of my life. I think that were more magick in us both that night

there ever there could be in The Underground.

Sarah's body pressed against mine. Instinct moved her where

experience naturally failed.

I had taken her most precious gift that she could offer to me. She

was just as I had dreamt she would be when I had first found her. She felt my

caress, so soft and gentle that it was, that she cried out for more. She

shut her eyes, letting her deeper senses take her in that moment. She had

wanted this. I had wanted this. Our two forms, our two minds- our souls

were one. We were entwined in one and other, riding out the greatest dreams.

It was perfection. It was bliss.

Our clothing lay scattered about on the floor of the room. When I had

removed my gloves I could not see the old blood stains from my past. At

least for a time I was free from it.

I had needed Sarah that night more then anything. We had spent most

of that night together. We took our time with it all, savouring every moment

of it. It was a strong intimate time. I think that I kept it up quite well.

This was something to be remembered, something to be cherished.

I would not let her go. This time I had made her mine. This time I

was looking out for myself. Who the Hell was I trying to fool? I loved her.

Exhausted, nearing dawn she fell asleep on my chest. I heard our

heart beats calming down, beating as one unit where moments before they had

been racing. And I shut my eyes as she lay on top of me under the quilt with

my arms wrapped around her, my hand on the naked small of her back and I

slept. And it was the first real contented sleep of my life.

Early morning she opened her eyes. I ran my fingers through her

hair. She smiled at me as the morning sun shown in from an opening in the

curtains leading out to the terrace of our suite.

"Good morning, love." My head ached a bit but laying there with her

numbed the pain. I wished that the room was darker though. With that bad

sobering up time I would have much preferred dim lighting. Thankfully the

headache was not all that bad and I did not need to vomit.

She cuddled up close on top of my chest. I felt like an innocent

little boy in her arms.

She sighed. "I have never been so happy."

"Good."

We were both wrapped in thick layers of blankets. She kissed me

three times. Her lips were as sweet as ripe peaches.

"Jareth. What will it be like, living in The Underground?"

I sighed. "Well, it will be most different from the life you live

now."

"Oh."

"Don't fret, my darling. Think of The Underground as being a universe

that can exist inside of your heart. It is a world, ever expanding and ever

changing but always the same- just like your mind. You know what it is like.

You have been there before and you have walked through and unriddled my

Labyrinth. It will be a new life for us both, together in The Underground.

The nights and the most beautiful thing you can imagine. The moon is like a

pale, blue jewel in the twilight sky. And it's never really dark. Everything

seems to have it's own illumination. And you can actually see the magick in

the air. "

She sat up and threw on her panties and a T-shirt. She would take a

hot bath. She gathered up all of our fallen clothing and placed it in a pile

on our now exposed bed mattress. The covers, blankets, sheets, all the bed

clothes were disheveled.

She sat down before going to clean herself. She smelled mildly of

sweat but her perfume covered this up a bit.

"Jareth,' She said "I really know so little about you. I want to know

everything."

"What do you mean 'everything'? I thought that Puck told you most of

it on how I became as I am."

"Well, he did But I want to know about you- not what you did but

really you- your personality. I know so much and yet so little. Please tell

me. It's not fair that you know so much about me and I know so little about

you. It's just not fair."

I laughed. "You say that so often. I wonder what your basis for

comparison is."

She giggled too. "You are not at all the way I had first thought

you out to be, you know that."

I smiled. "Well, all right then. You want to know all about ME then?"

She nodded. "Yes. I want to know about you and not the man that you

were for me when I first faced you after wishing Toby away."

"Well, what I cannot tell you now or what I forget to tell you now we

can discuss later. We have forever to get to know one and other and love each

other for it." I quoted Shakespeare's Macbeth "Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and

tomorrow…" I leaned back against the raised pile of pillows behind me. I

was comfortable now.

"Well, my life as a mortal was a bit of a waste." I said. "I had

always felt detached from the world that I had been born in to. I simply was

not meant for that time. Something about me just stood apart and yet now I

long to go back there more then ever.

:"When I was left to be The Goblin King, completely unprepared for

it- I did my best with what little knowledge that I had. Nothing much had

happened for years. The man that I had been, the creature I had become were

two completely different entities. I was Jareth, I was the Goblin King. It

was hard for me to connect the two.

"It was as if I wore a mask. But as I see it, everyone wears a mask.

Take this society for example. It is like a giant masquerade ball.

Everyone wears a mask. A man is least himself when he has to wear his own

face. Give him a mask and he will tell you the truth. I suppose that there

is a security is masks. As I see it, people where three masks- the mask they

wear for others in public, the mask of the person that they would like to be

and the final face is the mask of who they truly are. I tried to remove my

mask for you and be totally and truly myself."

She nodded.

"I did my best as The Goblin king, as I could. Not much happened

over a period of a great many years, nothing of consequence at any rate. Of

course chidden were wished away every now and again." I made a casual

gesture. "And there were those who dared try to solve my Labyrinth. They

all had failed, of course."

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] JARETH 10 (6 of 7)

From:

Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 21:17:52 EST

--------

Her eyes went wide. "You turned them all in to goblins?"

I looked in to her fearful eyes. I was afraid. I was afraid of

the conditions, that this love was not unconditional. I was afraid that she

would turn away in disgust at my faults. I had a flash back image of my first

love.

"Yes. Some." I said quietly as I looked away from her. I felt as

if I were on trial again.

She tilted her head to one side. "Did you… enjoy doing it?"

I nodded. I was feeling very uneasy at this point. "Yes."

"But you regret it?"

A moment of silence was passing between us. It was as if she

were peering deep in to my very soul.

"Yes."

She stepped over to me and sat on the bed beside me as I sat,

half covered by a blanket.

She kissed me. "It's over now. Look at your past. See it for what

it was but let it go."

I looked at her strangely. I did not understand. What was she doing?

Forgiving me?

"Regret it all if you must but don't regret one thing." She said.

"And that one thing would be?"

"Me." She smiled.

She patted my thigh, that rested under a thin blanket, my knees

were bent up ward, before standing up. "As soon as we finish I thought that

maybe we could walk through the city again."

I nodded. It was the only thing that I could think to do just then.

She walked in to the next room and shut the door. Once I heard

the tap running I collapsed with a sigh back on to the bed. I had never felt

so secure suddenly in my life.

As she bathed I fell back to sleep for a spell.

I feel asleep to the sound of her voice singing the song 'As the world

falls down'. She really had a beautiful voice, not as beautiful as my own

though, naturally but still quite lovely to tell the truth.

"There's such a sad love deep in your eyes,

A kind of pale jewel,

Open and closed within your eyes,

I'll place the sky within your eyes,

There's such a fooled heart

Beating so fast in search of new dreams,

A love that will last within your heart,

I'll place the moon within your heart,

As the pain sweeps through,

It makes no sense for you,

Every thrill has gone,

It wasn't too much fun at all,

But I'll be there for you…

As the world falls down

Falling,

As the world falls down…

Falling down,

Falling in love,

I'll paint you mornings of gold,

I'll spin you Valentine evenings,

Though we're strangers till now

We're choosing the path between the stars,

I'll leave my love between the stars,

Falling…

As the world falls down…

Falling down,

Falling,

As the world falls down,

Falling…

Falling…

Falling…

Falling in love

As the world falls down,

Down,

Falling,

Falling,

Falling,

Falling in love,

As the world falls down,

Falling,

Falling,

Falling,

Makes no sense at all,

Makes no sense to fall,

Falling,

As the world falls down,

Falling,

Falling,

Falling in love,

As the world falls down,

Down,

Falling,

Falling,

Falling in love,

Falling in love

Love,

Falling in love,

Falling in love,

Falling in love…"

For once in a very long while I was contented. I now held in me a

whisper of hope that I could truly be happy and I knew that it would never

fade on me but just grow louder and louder over time. Now I really had a

chance. Everything was now falling in to place. I could see my past and let

it all go now. It was that easy. Only for Sarah I had no regret.

From now on I thought it would no longer be a matter of repeating

dreams and lonely nights. For once in a long while there was a spark of

light that I could actually see shining in the darkness of my soul. And it

was Sarah's smile. There would never again be a need for emptiness, lost

tears and failed courage. She had freed me from myself.

I fell asleep and for a time as a mortal man I dreamed. I finally had

something to look forward to. I dreamed of our future together and how

forever she would look on everything with her innocent child like wonder and

fascination, breathing life in to my world once more, saving me and The

Underground in the process. And I was happy. I was truly happy. I had not

dreamed in so very long and this was truly precious to me. I had not dreamed

in so very look that I had forgotten how good something like that could be.

We walked around the city again that day even though my feet were sore

and ached with blister sores.

We came to a store that sold paintings. An image of a full moon

with a white owl souring in the sky caught Sarah's and mine fancy.

I studied the image for a moment or two. "The lighting is wrong. The

shadows are hitting the owl's features. It's as if he's flying headlong in

to head lights."

Sarah laughed at this. "Right. And I suppose you could do better."

"I could." I said simply.

She blinked. "You, an artist? I don't believe you."

"I was once, a long, long time ago. It was always just a hobby

though, a passing fancy."

"How good were you?" She asked as we walked from the store.

"Good enough that if I had remained a mortal I might have made a

career of it."

"Would you show me sometime, your art?"

"Of course. Sometime…"

It was Christmas Eve and as we passed a shoppe that sold

decorations and ornaments for the holiday. Sarah turned to me. "That's what

we need! We need a Christmas tree."

I laughed. "Sarah. I highly doubt that they would allow us to bring

a full sized pine tree in to the suite."

She frowned and made a face of a pouting child. Already she was

being as demanding as a Queen should be. I think that she would do just fine

as The Goblin Queen.

A plant store was a block away. I could see it's advertisement sign

from where I stood. "What about a small fern? We can place decorations on it

if that is what you would want."

Reluctantly she accepted but insisted upon buying many transparent

bulbs and crystal ornaments that reminded me of my own crystals that in my

usual condition I could form in my hands.

That night we returned to the Hotel room and ordered a feast of a

Christmas supper. We made a toast of apple cider to our new future together.

That night after we reenacted the events of the night before in bed

Sarah cuddled up close to me. It was one AM, Christmas morning. "How do all

the fairy tales end, Jareth?" She asked me.

I smiled as I ran my hand through her hair. "And they lived happily

ever after, my darling."

The next day Sarah had Christmas carols playing in the room's compact

disc player that sat under the television set.

The room smelt of pine, she had bought pine scented air freshener, popery and

incense. She said that it gave her the feel of Christmas.

After I finished with my morning bath and had dried my hair, shaved

and had done all that had needed to be done, still uncomfortable and awkward

in a human form I stepped up behind her as she sat eating her breakfast of

hot cinnamon muffins.

"I have a present for you." I said.

I walked over to my jacket. I reached in to my coat pocket. The

Jacket hung over a chair. I pulled out the velvet box.

"A Christmas gift for me?" Her eyes seemed to light up. "What is it?"

I handed her the box as I carefully lifted the lid for her.

She examined it in the early morning day light.

"It's a ring- nothing more. But if you wear it- it will grant you your

dreams. But this is not a gift for… an ordinary girl."

She placed it on her finger as I placed my own ring on my left hand

over my leather glove.

We had spent that whole day together in the Hotel suite. We had no

real need to go out.

We had a light supper of salad, apple cider, vegetable soup, cheese

casserole, a bit of white wine and for desert cinnamon raison cakes and

rather gooey Lindsey tarts with some hot tea.

Neither one of us mentioned the time though we both periodically

glanced at the clock.

Finally Sarah spoke up. "Jareth, what is it like to be an… immortal.

What does it feel like, physically?"

"Well, everything will be different. You will feel lighter for

it. The power that will be in you will seem very great at first and scary."

I said as I remembered my own true self and how it had first been like for

me, the change. "It will be like waking from a dream for the first time.

Everything in your past will seem fogged and vague, distant and easily

forgotten though you will never really forget it. Your mind will remember

everything in greater detail then it ever could.

You will see things with a strange and new clarity. Also I should

warn you now that all feelings, every emotion, every thought will seem more

intense, more potent, more exaggerated and clear. Everything will be

magnified emotionally ten times what it usually is. You will feel much

lighter for it all. You will feel very nearly weightless. You will also

find that any talent that you had possessed will be greater. You will be

more graceful. And once you have your magick, it is nearly instinct as to

how to use it. I will teach you when the time comes. Trust me. You will

think it to be the most fantastic, an amazing thing."

Finally it struck midnight. I took Sarah's hands in to my own as

we sat on the bed, fully dressed and prepared. Silently Sarah had said her

good byes. She would visit her Father, Stepmother and Toby later that next

month with a story that I was already plotting in my head that she could tell

them.

A wind swept up. We knew it was time.

"Merry Christmas." Sarah said to me.

I leaned in and we kissed.

To: .

Subject: [labyfic] *JARETH* 10 (7 of 7)

From:

Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 21:19:39 EST

--------

In an instant Sarah and I both stood confused in the middle of

the court of The fairies where our little adventure together had begun.

We stood there, still in each others arms.

"Well, isn't that sweet." Said Oberon cynically.

"What is the meaning of all of this?" I said as I stepped in front of

Sarah.

I knew that she and I were both still human. I would have felt the

increase of strength, the light comfortable, casualness of being my true self

had I been granted back my true state.

"We have changed our minds." Said Oberon.

The court of fair folk, leprechauns, elves, spirits, and entities of

all sorts stared on the two of us with detached eyes.

"Changed your minds? What you mean, 'changed your mind'?" I asked,

angrily. Puck and Apollo were no where in sight to come to our aid this time

about.

"We have decided that things were for the best before this experiment.

Sarah can most definitely survive in The Underground but I highly doubt that

she can partially rule it."

"We leave you with two choices, Jareth, The Goblin King."

"And they are?"

"You can either return to Earth and live out your days as a mortal

man with Sarah or…"

"Or?" I did not care much for the first option. I had liked my power

and authority and was miserable with the aches and pains of a mortal

condition after being so used to the benefits of immortality though there

were most definitely a many great faults to the condition.

"…Or you can live with the memories of this holiday that you two had

spent together but Sarah would have to forget it all. It is written that no

mortal should remain as a mortal with memories of the sight of The Fairy

court."

I looked at Sarah. I did not say anything.

"Very well." Oberon said.

"Wait. No! Just wait one bloody second, I did not make my choice

yet!"

"Your expression has answered for you, Goblin King." Said Titania

who sat beside her husband.

"No. Don't let her forget. Don't make her forget. It's important

to me. It's important to us. I love her Don't do this to us."

"The choice is yours, Jareth." Said Oberon.

I sighed. I looked at Sarah. She had a deep pain in her eyes. Not

even a full week as man and wife and already it seemed that I would betray

her. Well, I most certainly was not going to let her down, not now. I had a

promise to keep.

"It's ok, Jareth." She said. "It will be like it… it never

happened." Her eyes were glazing over with tears. "I love you." She said

quietly.

She fumbled with the gold ring on her finger, the heart of the

claughter ring facing towards her, meaning that she was bound forever, where

if it had been facing away it would have meant that she was looking for a

true love.

"No." I said. "No. No. No! And NO!" I shouted as I looked at

Oberon who only raised an eye brow with mild interest at my short temper

tantrum.

I sighed again. "I will go back with her to Earth." I looked away,

waiting to find us back in the hotel suite.

The court was silent yet that is where we still stood. I looked

up. Oberon was smiling at me. "Congratulations, Jareth. You passed."

"What?!?"

"You were willing to make the ultimate sacrifice, everything you had

for love. That proved to us two things, one that you are responsible and

willing to accept consequences as well as care for another before yourself.

And it proved to us that you two are definitely in love."

Oberon threw a crystal orb at us, it split apart in to two

separate bubbles, that one burst against my chest and the other at Sarah.

Sarah cried out. She did not know what was happening.

I felt a burst of energy as the crystal bubble shattered against me.

I felt light and clear headed. I was filled with my usual energy and grace.

I turned at looked at Sarah. She had changed as well though it was not so

physically apparent as it was that I could sense it. I was not as strong as

I usually was I doubt now that I can reorder time but all else, my ability

to form the crystals, change my shape, manipulate The Labyrinth and what not

all remained the same.

She looked at her hands and blinked as if she were seeing them for

the first time. She looked at the court of watchful immortal eyes and then

at me. She was drunk on the pleasure of the moment. She laughed. She threw

her head back and laughed with extreme joy.

It was at the point that Puck and Apollo appeared in a burst of light,

together, perhaps lovers for the time, I could not tell.

"See." Said Puck. "I told you that it would work. You REALLY owe us,

Jareth."

I looked at them both with confused wonder. I was far too happy to

think in terms of reason and logic.

Apollo spoke now. "Didn't you guess by now. This was ALL done to

bring you too together. We knew that you two loved each other. Something had

to have been done. We needed to be certain that you would be able to remain

together with that love."

"But we quarreled.". I said. "And we had a Hell of a time with

intimacy, it was awkward."

"All couples have their troubles but if the love survives that is

what matters and if the two are willing to sacrifice for each other. Sarah

proved that she was willing to sacrifice her old life for you. We needed to

know how strong your love for her was." Said Titania.

Puck nodded. "I knew that he would win." He bowed to Sarah, for

once I saw that he was not mocking but being direct and sincere. "Your

highnesses, the King and Queen of The Goblins."

"May we go home now?" Asked Sarah who seemed very eager to discover

her new powers.

I raised my hand, grateful that my powers were back. "I bid you

all a good evening but I think it is time that I bring my wife home. It's

been great fun and I had a jolly swell time." I was being sarcastic though I

was very happy just then, to happy to be annoyed a the deceptions involved in

this all. "But I think that it's time I bring my lovely young wife home

now."

In an instant Sarah and I stood in the throne room of my castle. It

was mid-afternoon here in The Underground.

Sarah looked at me. "Show me. How do I form a crystal?"

"Hold out your hand." I said.

She held out her right hand, the palm of it facing upward.

"Now concentrate. Think of how a crystal would feel in your hands.

Think of the shape and as you do place just a little of your own magical

energy in to it. "

She caught it by instinct. In a moment a cool, translucent gel was

oozing in her fingers. And icy, white wind, like a tiny tornado spun on her

fingertips. The gel formed within this tiny wind tunnel. In her hand now it

settled, at first uneven and moist, gel like, then it hardened in to a

perfectly round, perfectly clear crystal orb, just like one of mine. It is

just that it seemed smaller to fit in to her tiny, delicate hand.

"Now," I said "think on what you want and then throw the crystal and

it shall appear, or disappear. Or think on an image that you would like to

see within this kingdom and it shall appear in the sphere."

She blinked, looking a the crystal. She smiled. "I want to offer

you your dreams." She said. "You offered me mine once and it seems that I

received them after all. Let me see yours. It will show you're your dreams."

She smiled, imitating my manner.

I looked at the crystal. "I have never do this before… I have never

once looked in to my own dreams. My crystals can only offer OTHER people's

dreams."

"Ah, but this is not one of YOUR crystals. This is one of mine."

I smiled. With a slightly trembling hand I took the cool, little

crystal out of her hand. I held it in front of us both.

At first the image was vague and then it cleared. There was my dream,

there was my reality. It was us as we were standing in the throne room

looking in to that very crystal together and within that crystal the same

image going on for infinity within itself.

I gently placed down the crystal ball on to the stand along side

the window. The image vanished.

I took Sarah in to my arms and kissed her deeply for giving me my

dreams.

"How do all the fairy tales end, Jareth?" She asked me.

I smiled as I ran my hand through her hair. "And they lived happily

ever after, my darling. …And they lived happily ever after."

And so now I have a Queen and I think that maybe in fact we will live

happily ever after.

---------------------------------

Sincerely,

Jareth, the Goblin King


End file.
